


Monster Squad

by Aiden_Ravelle, AnkhsAngel



Category: Kamen Rider - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-27
Updated: 2019-12-16
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:40:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 50,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21576961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aiden_Ravelle/pseuds/Aiden_Ravelle, https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnkhsAngel/pseuds/AnkhsAngel





	1. Chapter 1

“Get up bro. If you’re late, I am not going to bail you out with the boss.” Daiki Kaito threw a pillow at his younger brother.

Kiba blinked his eyes open and groaned. “I know, I know. I’ll meet you at the station.”

Daiki rolled his eyes. “You better. I stuck my neck out to get you assigned here, don’t fuck up the first day.” He grabbed his bike keys and headed out of the apartment.

Kiba headed for the shower, then got dressed. Draping his badge over his hoodie, he grabbed his keys. Climbing on his bike, he headed for the 115th precinct. 

Andy entered the office, cup of coffee in hand, ready to get started on some new cases. She looked around, noticing a face she hadn’t seen before.

Kiba raised an eyebrow as he made his way toward the captain’s office, noticing a beautiful detective nearby. He gave her his most endearing smile before knocking on the door.

Captain Kadoya growled. “You’re late, Kaito. Get your ass in here.”

Kiba gave Andy another smile as he slipped in.

Andy rolled her eyes as she got started on the stack of papers on her desk.

Kadoya scowled at the new detective as Daiki face palmed. “Didn’t I tell you not to be late?” 

Daiki’s partner Tetsuya chuckled quietly.

Kiba raised his hands. “Traffic was bad.”

The Captain rolled his eyes, but leaned back in his chair. “Detective, your record is good. But you won’t get the same freedom here that you had in the 98th. I’ve got the Chief hovering over my shoulder because this is a trial program. So you’re getting a partner.”

It was Kiba’s turn to scowl. “I’ve always worked alone.”

“Not anymore.” He rose from the desk, opening the door to the squad room. “Takimoto, get your ass in here!”

Andy looked up in surprise before quickly coming to the office, “Yes, sir?”

“Meet your new partner, Kiba Kaito.”

“Has my work not been done well enough to continue working alone?” She questioned with a worried frown.

“Your work is fine. New rules from the Chief. Everyone gets a partner. This is a trial program and he wants as much oversight as possible.” Kadoya sat down with an annoyed sigh. “Feels more like it’s a way to screw us if something happens.”

Daiki spoke to his brother. “Don’t do anything stupid okay?”

Kiba gave him an innocent grin. “Moi?”

Tetsuya hid a smile behind his cup as Daiki groaned.

Andy held her hand out, “I’m Andaka Takimoto.”

Kiba took it, bending and kissing her fingers. “Get a drink with me?”

Andy stared at him for a moment, “I don’t date coworkers.”

He gave her a look. “Did I say date? I said drink, so we can get to know each other.”

Daiki stood, slapping the back of Kiba’s head. “I hope she eats you alive, idiot.” He and Tetsuya left the office, heading for their corner desks.

Kadoya rolled his eyes. “Get out of my office. Kaito, Takimoto has my permission to shoot you if you keep annoying her. Keep your head on the job.”

As they headed down the stairs, Andy spoke, “I’m sure we will get to know enough about each other at work.” When she got to her desk she handed him a stack, “These papers need sorting.”

His lips curled up but he remained silent and began the task.

Andy went back to finishing up the paperwork she was already on, trying to accept that she had to work with someone else.


	2. Chapter 2

  
  


Kiba swore as he ran. “How long _does_ backup take?” He glanced over at Andy as he panted hard before ducking into an empty warehouse.

She followed him, “They should be here soon.”

Cold laughter filled the warehouse. “Long time no see Detective. We have a lot to catch up on.”

Kiba closed his eyes with a groan. “Seriously? My karma is terrible.” He shouted back, “My calendars booked for the next ten years, Kawata. Make an appointment with my secretary.”

He pulled his gun with a sigh, looking at Andy. “When I move, you go find our backup.”

“And just leave you alone with that creep?”

“I’ll be fine.. I think.” He gave her a chagrined smile. “The sooner back up gets here, the better I’ll be.” He took a deep breath, then ran toward the warehouse door.

Suddenly, there was a blast of air which picked Kiba up and slammed him into a stack of metal pipes. He crumpled to the floor, laying still.

A tall man entered laughing. “Still underestimating me, I see. Well, this is the last time.”

Andy’s exit was blocked, so she stood, shooting at the man.

He waved his hand, the bullets falling to the ground. Kawata gave her a slow cruel smile. “Why thank you, Miss. Now I can save my bullets and use yours.” He bent and picked them up, then started walking toward Kiba.

When he reached the unconscious detective, he held one of the bullets out and focused. Suddenly it flew from his fingers and slammed into Kiba’s shoulder. Blood sprayed out over the floor as the detective jerked.

Kawata grinned, aiming another bullet at him. This time, the bullet entered his side and Kawata laughed as blood began pooling beneath Kiba.

The criminal turned to Andy. “Now, Detective Takimoto, time for you to do your thing.”

Her eyes narrowed, “What are you talking about?”

“Come now, young lady. We know all about your gift. Now you have two choices, either heal him and you both live a while longer or watch him die and explain why you did to your boss.”

Andy cursed and moved to Kiba’s side. Her hands started to glow a light blue as she focused on healing up his wounds. She’d never healed anything that major before, so she struggled to get the wounds to close, but finally she did, the blood no longer pouring out around him.

Kawata clapped enthusiastically. “Very good, Detective.” He looked up as a black van pulled up next to them. “Get him up and in. If you don’t, you both die.”

“Run, Andy.. don’t let him take you too.” Kiba’s voice was weak, his eyes half open.

“I can’t just let you die,” Andy argued, trying to lift him gently.

He tried to smile, weakly pushing himself into the van. He lost consciousness again.

Andy helped get him in a better position before sitting down beside him.

Kawata slammed the door shut, the van pulling away.

The criminal waited till a car pulled up, then climbed in and the car drove off.

Andy tried to heal Kiba further, but she felt herself growing weaker so she finally stopped. He looked so young like this, she stared at him a few minutes before shaking her head and looking around the van for any way out.

The door was locked from the outside. The van was empty aside from a single folded blanket.

Andy took the blanket and placed it under Kiba’s head as a makeshift pillow. 

After a short ride, the van halted. The door was unlocked and opened to reveal Kawata and a handful of waiting men. Two of them reached in, removing Kiba. They carried him into a small building and disappeared.

Kawata extended a hand to Andy.

She didn’t take it, but climbed out of the van.

He frowned, but didn’t press the matter. “Put your hands behind your back, Detective.”

She sighed but did as instructed.

A zip tie was quickly closed around her wrists, then she was led into the building. She was brought down a series of stairs into a basement where the other men were finishing stripping Kiba’s shirt off and tying him to a hook in the ceiling.

Andy stopped walking, watching what was happening. She struggled against the zip tie, feeling pain in her wrists.

Kawata smiled, pushing her into a chair. Two men flanked her as another threw a pail of water into Kiba’s face.

The detective coughed and spluttered, his eyes opening blearily. As he realized what was going on, he began to struggle.

“Welcome back, Detective Kaito. Time to pay for your crimes against me.” He touched a pair of jumper cables together with a twisted smile, watching them spark.

“Go to hell, Kawata. If my crimes are taking down your organization last year, I’ll gladly admit to them. Payback for my partner.” He stopped struggling and spit at the criminal.

Andy continued to struggle against the ties, wishing she could get Kiba to safety.

Kawata scowled, jamming the cables against Kiba’s chest.

The detective screamed, jerking wildly as the electricity coursed through him. After a few minutes, the cables were removed and he hung trembling.

Andy wished she could heal from afar, wishing to start trying to heal him.

Kawata laughed, resuming the torture. This time it lasted longer, Kiba’s eyes finally rolling up as his body gave out.

Kawata scowled and dropped the cables. He looked at one of the men. “Let me know when he’s awake. He has more to pay for.”

Andy glared at him, unable to do much else.

Kawata paused, then spoke again. “Better yet, take him down. Put them in a cell for now. I have some affairs to attend to.”

Kawata went up the stairs as the men flanking Andy pushed her toward a door nearby. Kiba was removed from the hook and dragged behind her. 

A cell loomed ahead, the bars glinting in the little light from the hall. One man unlocked it, then pushed Andy in. Another man threw Kiba in, a sick snapping noise sounding as he landed hard on his chest. The door was locked, the men laughing as they walked away.

Andy struggled to move toward him, putting her back toward him so her hands could be near him. She focused for a long while on healing up his wounds, ignoring the dizziness it was causing her. When she was done, she moved away, leaning against a wall.

“Andy?” The word was slow and confused.

“Yeah?”

“Sorry for getting you dragged into this. Are you alright?”

“Just a little exhausted from healing you,” she paused a moment. “If we get out of here, please don’t tell anyone I can heal. No one’s supposed to know. I have no idea how that creep found out.”

He chuckled. “Don’t worry. I just ask the same, okay?” There was a flash, then her hands were free.

Andy looked impressed for a moment before rubbing her wrists.

Another flash, but this time a flicker of flame started.

“Shit!” His words were pained. “They used rope, the bastards.” Kiba tried to beat the flame out from around his wrists as it burned.

Andy rushed to him, getting the flame to stop before trying to untie him. She eventually got it, then spent a few minutes healing his wrists.

“That’s three I owe you. I hope to pay you back soon.” Kiba lay on the floor, breathing hard.

Andy took off her jacket and held it out, “Want a pillow?”

He shook his head. “You need to stay warm. Trust me, this place gets freezing when the temperature drops.” He looked at the cell door with a scowl.

“Then you need it. You’re worse off than I am, use it as a mini blanket.” She laid it over his chest.

“Promise me something, will ya?” Kiba squinted at her as he tried to get warm.

“What?”

“Stay alive. Don’t let him kill you. And make sure he pays for me and my partner?”

“I’ll try. But I’m also going to try to keep you alive too.”

Kiba shook his head. “Kawata’s mental. I barely survived last year. He’s got a vendetta now. I’m a dead man and I know it.” He shook slowly, the concrete floor sapping the little body heat the jacket generated.

Andy sighed, “Come lean against me, it’ll keep you warmer.”

He made his way slowly to her side, finally slumping semi conscious. His skin was icy.

She focused on him a bit, trying to help raise his temperature a little. After a few minutes, his temperature was back to normal, so she leaned back against the wall, falling asleep.

Hands pulling him away from her brought Kiba conscious. He started to fight back, groaning when a solid punch connected with his sternum. He was hauled upright, out of the cell and up the stairs. When they emerged back into the large room, he began fighting again.

A punch to the jaw dazed him, and he shook it as the men bound him again to the hook. He blinked his eyes as Kawata smiled. “I don’t have as much time as I wished, but it’ll be enough.”

He caressed a large dagger.

Kiba’s eyes went dark as he growled.

“Recognize this, do you?” The criminal laughed. He turned to Andy. “I cut his partner open with this last year.” Kawata kept laughing as Kiba screamed wordlessly. “Her screams were wonderful.”

“You’re sick,” Andy glared at him.

“Maybe..” The criminal quickly whirled, slashing across Kiba’s chest deeply.

Kiba gasped, arching his body in a vain attempt to escape the blade as Kawata continued slashing at him.

Andy closed her eyes tightly, trying not to think about what was happening. She wished more than anything that someone would come save them.

The sound of sirens broke into Kawata’s laughter. He growled, his men urging him to flee. Finally, he sighed and embedded the dagger into Kiba’s shoulder to the hilt before disappearing through a secret passage in the wall, followed by all the men.

Andy rushed to Kiba, slowly pulling out the dagger and focusing on closing up the wound. She worked on the slashes a while until she heard the door opening when she quickly dropped her hands, swaying as she turned to look at the police who entered.

Daiki and Tetsuya ran in, their faces terrified. Tetsuya quickly closed the door as Daiki moved to Andy. “How bad?”

“He has a few slashes that’ll need to be stitched up. He should be okay though.”

“Will he survive an ambulance? There’s a faster way, but I don’t want to use it unless absolutely necessary.”

“Yeah, he can survive. These slashes aren’t too deep.”

Daiki looked at his partner, who pulled out his phone and dialed. The detective quickly cut his brother down, cradling him close. He looked at Andy. “We need to talk after he’s taken care of.”

She nodded, slowly sitting in a chair as she waited.

Soon, Kiba was enroute to the hospital, Daiki in the ambulance with him. Tetsuya drove Andy to the hospital. His eyes kept straying from the road to her.

Andy looked out the window, hoping Kiba was doing okay. She tried to block out the things she’d seen, his screaming echoing in her mind.

Twenty minutes later, Kiba was in a private guarded room. Daiki looked up as Andy entered, followed by his partner. “Thank you for what you were doing.” 

Andy nodded, wondering how he knew.

“The 115th precinct is known as the Gifteds. Everyone you work with has some kind of ability. I can teleport. I am also telepathic.”

Andy nodded, taking in the information.

Tetsuya sat down. “What are we going to do about that bastard? This is the second time he’s nearly killed Kiba.”

Daiki scowled. “I wish I knew. The damn Chief told the Captain that there was no way to connect him to what happened. Starting to think he was paid off.”

Andy raised an eyebrow, “We could start by seeing where the secret passage they took went.. If we find enough evidence, it’d be easy to connect him even if the Chief doesn’t like it.”

Tetsuya grinned. “I like the way you think. You up for going back with me?”

She took a deep breath before nodding. 

He gently touched her shoulder as he stood. “Tomorrow. Get some sleep. You need a ride?”

She shook her head, “I don’t live too far from here.” She looked at Kiba again before heading out the door.

The detective frowned, then settled next to Daiki and closed his eyes.


	3. Chapter 3

The next morning, Tetsuya knocked on her door, two coffees in hand. 

Andy opened the door, giving him a small smile, “Morning.”

“You look like hell. Sure you’re up for this?” He handed her a coffee.

“I’ll be fine,” she nodded.

He studied her as he sipped his. “Can I ask a question?”

“Sure,” she raised an eyebrow.

“Why did you do it? You and Kiba have done nothing but fight since you were partnered up. You didn’t have to heal him the way you did.”

“I’d have healed anyone I was with in that situation. I’m not just going to let someone die.”

Tetsuya nodded slowly. “Good to know. I feel safer somehow.” He grinned at her, then inclined his head. “I’ll wait in the car.”

Andy grabbed a couple things before heading out to the car. She climbed into the passenger seat before taking a sip of her coffee.

Tetsuya pulled into traffic, heading toward the building she had been held in. “Kiba was released earlier. He’s on leave, but I’ll bet my next paycheck he’ll be back before he heals completely. Unless Daiki chains him to the bed.” He chuckled to himself.

Andy gave a small smile but stayed quiet as she looked out the window.

Ten minutes later, he parked in front of the taped off building. “Be careful. If they can go out, they can come back in. Keep an eye out.” He headed inside, gun drawn.

Andy followed behind, gun in hand as she looked around.

The secret passage stood open, beckoning them.

Tetsuya exchanged looks with her, then stepped in. He slowly began walking, eyes darting around. He got halfway down when there was the sudden sound of voices. He began to quickly walk backwards as they got louder. There was a gunshot, then silence.

Andy raised her gun, shooting toward where the voices had come from.

Sounds of running, then the passage was empty aside from a crumpled figure.

Andy knelt by Tetsuya, focusing on stopping the bleeding before fully healing the wound. She struggled, but finally lifted him and took him out of the passage.

“I’m an idiot.” The words were laced with pain as he roused. “Tell you to be careful and I get myself hurt.” 

She shook her head, “It’s okay, just relax.”

He laid his head back, breathing hard as his skin began changing color.

Andy stared at him for a moment, a hint of panic in her voice, “What’s your skin doing?”

He lifted his hand and cursed. “No, no. Not now dammit.” He focused, the color slowly receding. Once it was gone, he sighed. “My gift. When I’m hurt, it tries to take over to heal me. Sorry you saw that.” He attempted to rise, but couldn’t.

Andy focused as she raised her hands, trying to help heal the pain he was feeling. “I can try to carry you out of here, or we can wait a bit longer until you can move.”

“We need to find where it leads.” Tetsuya struggled to stay awake.

“I’ll go. Just stay here and rest,” Andy ordered.

“Alone? Are you crazy? They’ll kill you.” 

“Well we need to know, and you can’t move, which just leaves me.”

“Dammit!” He hit the floor with a fist. “You better come back. Kiba will kill me if you don’t.” 

Andy nodded, starting to head back down the passage, gun drawn. She took a deep breath to try to calm herself as she continued on.

The voices began again, not as close this time but louder. “Kill anyone in the passage. Boss wants the building torched.”

Andy internally cursed, but moved forward, trying to get close enough to shoot the speaker. 

A slim blond soon appeared, gas can in hand. He wasn’t paying attention and almost walked into her. His eyes grew wide and he opened his mouth to shout a warning.

Andy quickly shot him, then continued on around him. 

The passage opened up into what appeared to be the bottom level of a gentleman’s club. Loud music was blasting as a scantily clad woman gyrated on a stage. There was a large group of men huddled around a desk.

Andy backed up, not wanting to take on an entire group. She then quickly ran back to where Tetsuya was.

The detective was unconscious, his skin completely dark. His hands were now talons and there appeared to be wings growing from his back.

She looked him over in amazement for a moment before realizing she couldn’t lift him, let alone get him back into the car. She sat down, eyes trained on the passageway to keep watch.

An hour later, Tetsuya’s eyes flew open. He froze as he met Andy’s.

“How are you feeling?”

“Better.” His voice was deeper, panic coloring the words as he tried to curl up and hide.

“That’s good. I found where the tunnel leads.”

He pushed himself up, his embarrassment forgotten. “Where?”

“A gentleman’s club.”

“Kawata’s. I wish we could get a search warrant.” He grimaced as he began reverting. “Are you going to rat me out?”

She shook her head, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone.”

He cocked his head. “Why not? You’d be hailed as a hero, you know.”

Andy shrugged, “I’m not about that. Plus, I understand wanting to keep some things secret.”

He gave a chuckle. “Nice to know.” He groaned as he pushed himself to his feet and swayed. “We need to get out of here.”

Andy nodded, wrapping an arm around him to help him stay steady.

“Can I ask a favor?”

“Sure.”

“I need a safe place to rest. My place is too far. Any ideas? I need to contact Daiki as well.”

“Is my place close enough?”

“You don’t mind a dragon?” 

Andy shook her head, “My place is big enough for a dragon.”

He smiled at her. “Then yeah. Your place is fine.”

Andy helped him out of the building, “Need me to drive?”

He handed her the keys. “Yeah.”

She helped him into the passenger seat before climbing into the drivers side. She headed off toward her place, arriving quickly. She opened the door to the house and helped him to the couch, “Do you want anything to eat or drink?”

“When I wake, I’ll be thirsty.” His eyes were closing, his features starting to change before her eyes.

She headed to her room and changed before going to the living room and curling up in her favorite chair. She pulled out a book, staring at it for a while as she lost herself in her thoughts.

Several hours later, she heard him stir.

She put the book down, going over toward the couch. She looked him over a minute before going to get him some water.

He gave her a grateful smile, quickly draining the glass before sitting up. “I’m really sorry about this.” 

“It’s fine. I’m just glad I could help.”

He watched her for a minute. “You could get into a lot of trouble for doing this. So I have to ask why? We barely know each other.”

“I just want to help as many people as I can. If that means letting a dragon sleep on my couch a few hours, that’s fine. I wasn’t going to just leave you to die, society loses too many to criminals in the first place, we don’t need more losses.”

He laughed quietly, then ruffled his hair. “What are we going to do about Kawata? He’s going to keep coming after Kiba.”

Andy sighed, “I don’t know if there’s anything we can actively do right now, but I’ll keep an eye out. The first chance I get to take him down, I’ll do it. If he keeps coming for Kiba, I’m bound to run into him sometime.”

Tetsuya nodded thoughtfully. “Good to know we have another set of eyes to watch his back.” He was startled by his cell ringing. “Tet here. Daiki? Speak up, I can barely hear you.” His eyes widened in shock at whatever he was hearing. “We’ll be right there. Don’t you dare hang up.”

He put his hand over the phone. “You need to call an ambulance. Kawata broke into Daiki’s place and took Kiba.” He reached for his pocket pad, scribbling the address down and handing it to her.

He stood, heading for the door, speaking quickly into the phone. “Keep talking to me partner.”

Andy quickly did as instructed and called the ambulance. She then grabbed a few things before looking at Tetsuya, “How can I help?”

“Get me there as fast as possible. He’s hurt bad.”

Andy nodded, grabbing the keys and heading to the car. She quickly drove there, following him inside.

The apartment was trashed, broken furniture everywhere. Tetsuya knelt beside a barely conscious Daiki, rage in his eyes as he saw his partner’s injuries.

Andy knelt down, “Let me help him.”

Tetsuya moved aside, his fists trembling. “I’m going to kill Kawata.”

Andy focused on trying to heal some of the damage. She knew she couldn’t heal it all before the ambulance came, but she tried to keep him stable as she worked. 

The apartment phone rang and Tetsuya answered it. He growled menacingly as he listened, then slammed the receiver down. “He wants you to come and watch.” The detective looked at Andy.

“So can’t we have backup follow me there and take him down?”

“I’m going to damn well ask.” He angrily dialed his cell, curtly informing Tsukasa of events. He nodded a few times, then hung up.

“He’s sending guards to the hospital and giving us Nakamura and Ryon.” He stepped aside as the EMTs arrived.

Andy nodded, “Let’s get going then.”

After arriving at the address, Andy entered slowly, gun drawn, unsure what to expect.

Tetsuya followed after meeting the other detectives.

A giant flood light switched on, blinding the four.

“Stop hiding you coward!” Tetsuya yelled enraged.

Smaller lights blinked on, the flood light going off as Kawata stood several feet away. “It’s just like Christmas. All my presents are here. All I need to do is wrap them.” He motioned, the detectives’ guns flying out of their hands.

Andy growled, glaring at the man. “Where’s Kiba?”

Kawata laughed. “He’s alive. Though he’s going to wish he wasn’t.” The criminal touched a button, revealing a straitjacketed Kiba. He was lying in a cell, his eyes closed.

“Let him go, you bastard!” Tetsuya clenched his fists, his skin darkening. Behind him, the other detectives both began to grow ears and tails.

“Unh unh. Shift and he dies painfully.” Kawata grinned gleefully as the three froze. He motioned to his men, who quickly bound and sedated them.

Andy froze for a moment, before running at the men, trying to get them to stop.

One man hit her, knocking her to the ground as the others carried the men out of the room.

Andy pushed herself up, running after them and grabbing onto one of them.

Kawata grimaced, then shrugged. “Maybe I’ll get a bonus. Take her as well.”

The one Andy had ahold of quickly bound her hands and feet, tossing her in the white government van.

Kawata waved. “Enjoy your government vacation.” He closed the door and the van began to drive.

Andy struggled against the ties, hoping to break free so she could rescue the others. 

An hour later, the van stopped and the doors were opened. A masked person cut her leg bonds, pulling her out of the van roughly and holding her to the side.

More masked people exited the building in front of her, grabbing the still unconscious men. They were carried in, Andy pushed forward behind them.

She struggled against them, trying to break free.

The group stopped, a white haired man blocking their way. He looked at Andy disapprovingly. “Detective Takimoto, I’m disappointed. You should have stayed out of this.”

Andy growled, “I wasn’t going to let you take them without a fight.”

“This didn’t involve you. You could have had a fine career, instead you sided with these dangerous creatures.” He clucked his tongue in annoyance.

“They aren’t dangerous.”

“They aren’t human. That makes them the definition of dangerous. Plus they took jobs with the public. No doubt trying to lull us into complacency so they could kill without fear.”

“That’s ridiculous! They want to help people.”

The man huffed in exasperation. “You’re delusional. They are dangerous and can’t be allowed free. But they will be of use to this world. Take them to the labs.” He moved aside, a contented smile appearing.

Andy growled at him, going back to fighting the ties.

The group began to split up, the masked people disappearing in different directions with their cargo. Finally only Andy and Nakamura were left. 

They were unceremoniously dumped in a sterile white cell. The guard sighed heavily. “We have too many of his kind right now. He’ll have to wait here. I advise you to get away from him before he wakes.” The man locked the cell and disappeared.

Andy moved, leaning on the wall of the cell, trying to think of a way out.

Nakamura groaned, then started to struggle against his bonds. “Takimoto? Where?” He quit as his strength gave out. “ _Please_ tell me we aren’t where I think we are..” His eyes were terrified, his body starting to tremble.

There was a scream from another room. Nakamura recoiled, his eyes squeezed tightly shut as he began to shake in earnest. “I don’t want to die.”

“I’m going to do my best to make sure you don’t,” Andy tried to calm him. 

He growled for a minute, then he looked at her. “Come here.”

She pushed herself up and moved toward him.

He extended a claw, slashing her bonds. As they fell away, the claw vanished and he panted hard from exertion. “The first chance you get, run.”

“ _If_ I do get the chance to run, I’ll be sure to come back to save you guys.”

He shook his head. “There won’t be anything to save. The good thing is they don’t seem to want you.” He rested against the floor, trying to stretch despite his bonds. “Run and don’t stop. Leave the city and don’t look back.”

“If no one fights it, things like this will just keep happening.”

“How can you fight the government? The people accept the lies they’re told. You are one person against the world.” He locked eyes with her. “Just promise you’ll remember who we were. Don’t forget we existed.” He sighed, then whispered “I really wanted to hit eighteen..”

Andy stared at him a minute, “How old are you?” 

He gave her an embarrassed smile. “Sixteen. I lied to join the 115th.”

Andy shook her head but stayed quiet. 

“It was the only place we could be safe.” The teen dropped his eyes. “I know it was wrong, but Ryon and I were so afraid..” He tried to will his claws out to free himself, but nothing happened.

Andy went over and worked on untying the ropes for him. 

He gave her a fleeting smile before he wrapped his arms around his legs. “One day, this will be a bad memory. When that happens, write our names okay?”

The cell opened, a guard pulling him out. Another tossed Kiba and Tetsuya in, battered and bloodied. 

Nakamura locked eyes with her. “Remember us.” He was pushed through the room’s door and disappeared.

Andy moved to Kiba first, starting to heal him. When she was done, she did the same to Tetsuya then moved back to leaning against the wall.

Tetsuya’s eyes opened slowly. “They took you too?” His voice was sad.

“Apparently I caused too much trouble trying to stop them.”

He tried to chuckle, but hissed in pain. “They haven’t hurt you?” He pushed himself to a sitting position.

“Other than a few punches when I tried to stop them, they’ve pretty much ignored me.”

He sighed in relief. “Then maybe you’ll be released. If you are, let Tsukasa know what happened so he can shut the group down before they find out about him.”

“I don’t know how we’ll shut it down, the Chief seems to be in charge here.”

He shook his head. “You can’t shut _this_ down. But Tsukasa can shut down the resistance group before any more of us die. We’ll probably have to change cities.”

“I hope to find a way to shut _this_ down. I’m just not sure how yet.”

“You going to topple the government alone? Cause places like this are government funded.” He moved to Kiba as the detective’s eyes fluttered open.

“I’d rather die trying than just letting things continue,” Andy answered before looking Kiba over, “How are you feeling?”

“I’m okay. Just wish you hadn’t gotten involved.” Kiba scowled. He was about to say something else when a high pitched scream was heard. Kiba’s eyes filled with tears. “Ryusei..” He bowed his head praying rapidly. “Please let him die quickly. Don’t let him suffer too much.”

Andy growled before praying for rescue for them all.

Ten minutes later, the guards returned. One pointed a gun at them as he opened the cell. He stepped aside to allow the teen to be tossed in, then relocked it.

The teen was beaten badly and there was so much blood covering him, it was almost impossible to identify the source. He was in shock, his body trembling.

Andy quickly moved toward him, spending the next couple hours trying to heal him up and keep his vitals steady. She focused on rebuilding blood cells to help replace some of what he lost. Eventually, she moved away from him, swaying as dizziness and exhaustion took over her.

Tetsuya steadied her. “Are you alright?” He watched Kiba cradle the teen close.

“I’ve never done this level of healing before. Guess my body just isn’t used to it,” she sat back down and watched Ryusei.

“I’m sorry to say this, but you shouldn’t heal us anymore. It just prolongs the torture.” Kiba’s voice was low, his hand combing through Ryusei’s hair. “They are going to continue hurting him-hurting us until we die.”

Andy shook her head, refusing to accept that choice. “I can’t just let you guys die.”

Kiba’s eyes met hers, glittering with unshed tears. “My parents died in one of these places. My brother and I barely escaped. Believe me, the dead are the lucky ones.”

Andy sighed, staying quiet as she thought things over.

They sat in silence until the guards returned once again. Ryon was barely conscious, being pushed in as the guard motioned for Kiba.

“Take care of them.” Kiba didn’t resist, leaving the room without a fight.

Andy went to Ryon, ignoring Kiba’s words about not healing, and got to work on fixing him up. 

An hour later, alarms began blaring. Guards began hurriedly escorting men in white coats out of the building. The door to the cell door burst open, a guard with a gun firing wildly.

Tetsuya dived for Andy, jerking as the bullets impacted in his back. 

The guard yelled, pulling the keys and unlocking the cell. He stalked toward Andy single mindedly.

Andy backed up against the wall before kicking out at him.

The guard fell, Ryon slamming a fist into his face.

“Tet?” Ryon scrambled to turn the dragon onto his back, horrified at the injuries he had.

“I’ll work on healing him, but we need to find Kiba and get out of here.”

The wolf nodded, slipping out of the cell, then the room.

Andy focused on stopping the bleeding before anything else, hoping Ryon could find Kiba.

The alarms stopped, Tsukasa suddenly appearing. “Takimoto? Is everyone alive?”

“Ryon is looking for Kiba, but these two are,” she motioned to Ryusei and Tetsuya.

Tsukasa nodded, his face stony.

Ryon slowly entered the room, his eyes averted. “Captain, the living prisoners have been released. We can move them to the Underground as soon as everyone’s ready.”

Tsukasa grimly acknowledged, then waved the waiting medics to take over from Andy. He sighed. “I’ll tell Daiki when he wakes.”

Andy looked at Ryon, “Take me to see Kiba.”

Ryon’s face was anguished, but he didn’t argue. He led her to another room, pushing the door open. There was a crimson colored dragon sprawled on the floor, blood pooled around it from multiple injuries, It appeared to be dead.

Andy took a deep breath, tears filling her eyes. She knelt beside him and started healing the wounds. She wished more than anything for him to live. She knew it was pointless to heal him if he was dead but something told her to keep working at it. Eventually, the light from her hands surrounded him, and though she felt exhausted, she continued. She passed out right as his heart started beating again.

Ryon’s eyes widened as Kiba reverted to human, his breathing stabilizing. The wolf gently reached for Andy’s pulse. He said a prayer of thanks as he found it strong. Ducking out the door, he waved several medics down along with Tsukasa. “I don’t know how she did it, but he’s alive. She’s unconscious though.”

The captain inhaled sharply. “Take them all to the ranch safehouse. We’ll decide what to do when everyone’s recovered.”

Andy blinked her eyes open, confused at what happened and at her location. She glanced around trying to figure everything out.

Tsukasa entered quietly, pausing as he saw her awake. “Hey. How are you feeling?” He carefully sat down by her bed.

“Confused,” she admitted, “but okay.”

He gave her a small smile. “You’re at the main Underground movement’s safehouse.”

She nodded slowly.

“Just to set your mind at ease, Kiba is fine. He’s still asleep, as is Ryusei and Tet. Daiki is on his way. When he gets here, we’ll discuss what happens next.”

She nodded again, “Okay.”

“If you’re up to it, I can make you something to eat?”

Andy pushed herself up, “Sure.”

He gave her a bright smile before exiting. 

Twenty minutes later, he brought in a tray with pancakes, eggs and bacon. He set it down on her lap as Daiki knocked, eyes peering around the door.

“Am I interrupting?”

Tsukasa shook his head, approaching and giving the detective a kiss. “You’re just in time.”

Daiki smiled, returning the kiss and entering the room. He grabbed a chair and sat backwards, attentively watching Andy.

Andy gave him a small smile as she started eating her food.

Tsukasa waited for a few minutes, then spoke quietly. “I have a choice for you, Takimoto.”

“What is it?”

“You can go back to your normal life or you can join us in fighting the government.” Tsukasa sighed. “Before you decide, let me tell you the pros and cons of both, okay?”

She nodded, waiting for him to continue.

“If you choose to return to your life, you will be reassigned to a new station. You will have your memory erased. You won’t remember the facility or us. You’ll be safe. If you choose to join us, know that this is a fight to the end. Ours or theirs. No turning back. We will protect you until our deaths. Think hard.”

Andy was silent for a minute, thinking things over. Finally she answered, “I’ll join you.”

Tsukasa let out the breath he’d been holding and nodded. “Then I’ll tell you the rest. The Chief has disbanded the 115th. He has declared us dangerous renegades and has told everyone it’s hunting season. We’re out of jobs and wanted people.”

Andy took a deep breath and nodded.

“Alright then, that’s the bad news. Good news is, this is your new home. You can get your stuff when you’re up to it. Before you say anything, this is my house. I own all the land around here. It’s not a hardship because frankly I’m loaded. Trust fund baby.” He laughed as Daiki rolled his eyes. “So, don’t feel unnerved. Everyone else already lives here except for Kiba and Daiki here. But they’re moving in too.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re quite welcome. You saved Kiba somehow and I can’t thank you enough.” Daiki fixed his gaze on her tray, eyes glistening.

“I don’t know what I did, honestly,” Andy admitted.

The detective suddenly reached over and kissed her hand. “You brought him back from the brink of death. I can never repay that. I just wish he’d discovered the family secret in a better way.”

“So he didn’t know he was a shifter?”

“No. Our parents hid it from him until they were taken. Even then, he was told the gene had skipped him.” Daiki sighed. “I wanted him to have as normal a life as possible. He wanted to help, so I got him assigned to the station. What an idiot I was.” He hung his head.

“You just wanted what was best for him. It’s understandable,” Andy answered.

“I don’t blame you.”

Daiki turned as Kiba spoke from the doorway. “I blame me.”

“Why?” Andy wondered.

“He could have fought back better. Been more prepared. He’s constantly worried about the government grabbing me.”

Kiba grabbed his brother’s shoulders. “I probably would have gotten in more trouble if I’d known when I was younger. You have nothing to apologize for.”

Tsukasa chuckled wryly. “He would have become Kawata if he’d known instead of a runner.”

Andy sighed and changed subjects, “How are you feeling?”

He let go of Daiki and came over to her. “Sore. Amazed I’m still breathing. I was positive I was going to die.” He shuddered at the memory. “Terrified you’d be next.”

“They didn’t seem to want me though, I just got taken because I kept fighting them.” She sighed, “And you basically were dead. I’m honestly surprised I was able to heal you the way I did.”

Kiba stared at her in shock for a minute, then shook his head. “Wow. I’m going to have to keep a running tally now.”

Tsukasa looked at him. “Plan B is in effect.”

Kiba scowled in annoyance. “The asshole _actually_ shut us down huh? Had a nagging feeling he was government connected.”

Daiki sighed. “What do we do now?”

The captain frowned. “I’ll get someone to pack and bring your stuff here.” He turned to Andy. “Do you want me to do the same?”

She shook her head, “I can take care of it.”

Tsukasa nodded. “They might completely ignore you. Starting to wonder if you should move.” He tapped his lips with a finger. 

“Might be smarter to use her place in emergencies.” Tetsuya shakily moved over to them. “Glad to see you guys.”

“Yeah, it wouldn’t hurt to keep a place closer to town,” Andy agreed.

“She’s out of a job too. Might be a problem.” Daiki frowned.

Tsukasa shrugged. “I could pay her bills. Unless you have another source of income?” He looked at her.

“I have some money saved up, don’t worry about it.”

“Do you mind answering a few questions?” He looked uncomfortable.

She raised an eyebrow, “Okay..?”

“Your gift.. Is it your only one?”

Daiki snickered, then looked at her. “His polite way of asking what are you? Are you just a healer or are you more? Doubt you’re a shifter, but you could be a witch.”

“Healing is all I know how to do. If I’m capable of more, I haven’t done it yet. My mother had no gifts, and I don’t know what, if any, my father had.” 

The men sat in silence for a minute, then Tsukasa clapped his hands. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

Ryon raised an eyebrow as he entered. “Andy, is Ryu alright? He hasn’t woken yet.”

“Let me look him over again,” Andy answered. “He probably just needs a lot of rest after what happened.” She pushed herself off the bed.

Ryusei lay unmoving, his breathing slow. His face was feverish, the heat radiating off him like an oven. Ryon sat down worriedly as Tsukasa stood at the foot of the bed scowling. 

“I’m going to read him the riot act when he wakes up.”

Andy went to Ryusei’s side, her hands glowing as she raised them. She focused on fighting the fever first, then checked on his injuries, further healing them. “He should be okay. The fever is gone.”

Ryon sighed in relief, then turned to Tsukasa. “You found out the truth, didn’t you?”

The other three men looked at him in confusion. “What are you talking about?”

Tsukasa glared at the wolf before nodding. “His idea or yours?”

Ryon dropped his eyes. “Mine. Thought it would be safer to get him paired with me officially.”

Kiba glanced at Andy. “Do you have any idea what they are talking about?”

“If it’s about what Ryusei told me, then yes,” she nodded but didn’t say more.

The teen in question picked that moment to blink his eyes open. He sighed when he saw Tsukasa’s face. “I’m fired aren’t I?”

“Given you aren’t old enough to _have_ the job, I’d have to say yeah, you’re fired. Not that it means much since we’re all unemployed at the moment. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Fear. I didn’t want to be a burden or seen as a kid.” Ryusei sat up, bowing his head.

Tsukasa rolled his eyes. “Idiot. No more secrets or I’ll kick your ass, understood?”

The teen nodded quickly, then looked at Andy. “Glad you’re not dead.”

“Glad you’re not dead either,” she gave a soft chuckle.

Daiki glared at both of them. “Since when is wolf boy not old enough to be a cop?”

Ryusei turned red. “I lied about my age. I’m only sixteen.”

Tetsuya bit back a chuckle as the brothers’ jaws dropped.

Ryon raised his hands in surrender. “I wanted him protected. The only way he could be with me constantly was to get him assigned to the station. So we lied.”

“Where the hell are his parents?” Daiki sent a look at the teen, who shrank under it.

“Same place yours are, Kaito.” Ryon snarled. “Same way too.”

The brothers paled, Daiki turning away, a whispered “Sorry” hanging in the air.

Andy gave Ryusei a sad smile, moving back away from his side. 

“Now that that issue is taken care of, let’s plan our next moves.” Tsukasa looked at them.

“What can we do exactly? Other than raid more facilities for prisoners?” Andy wondered.

“I want Kawata’s ass.” Kiba growled. “If we can somehow get enough evidence to link him with the Chief, we can get reinstated.”

“We’re going to do that _and_ dodge hunters? How hard did your brain get rattled, bro?” Daiki crossed his arms.

“Hunters won’t be a problem if we can lure them out and expose them. So we bait them.” Tsukasa grinned. “Volunteers?”

“I’ll do whatever I can to help, but if they don’t want me, I’m not sure what I can do exactly,” Andy answered.

“Just stay with whoever goes out. Hopefully, there won’t be any injuries but hunters aren’t known for playing nice.” Tsukasa’s eyes went around the assembled detectives.

“I’ll go.” Kiba shrugged and Tetsuya sighed.

“I’ll go too, keep an eye on crazy here.”

“I’m meeting Jack and Conner.” Kiba shot him a grin.

Daiki face palmed. “Can I restart the year now please?”

Tet chuckled. “Definitely going.” He glanced at Andy. “Want to meet two people more insane than your partner?”

Andy shrugged, before nodding.

Kiba headed out of the house, climbing on a red motorcycle as Tet headed for his car. “You want to ride with me or Tet?” 

Andy raised an eyebrow, “Motorcycle seems exciting. Guess I’ll go with you.”

Kiba tossed her a helmet as Tet grinned. “Brave girl.”

Andy chuckled and put the helmet on, climbing on behind Kiba.

He revved the engine, then smoothly pulled onto the road, Tet following. They drove for an hour, finally pulling into a biker bar. Kiba checked the two bikes parked nearby, then turned off his.

Tet pulled in, climbing out and putting the keys away. He shot Andy a bright grin before pulling the bar door open.

Kiba took her hand, entering the dimly lit building. A sour looking bartender jerked his head toward the back and the detective tossed a twenty on the bar. “Round of beers.”

The man nodded as they continued forward, emerging into a better lit pool room. 

Andy looked around, eyes taking in everything in the room. 

Two longhaired bikers were engrossed in a game. They completely ignored the three of them, constantly circling the table as they traded shots.

“Can’t wait to spend your money.” The taller of the two chuckled as the other flubbed a shot.

“Shut up. You can dream.” The other growled before looking straight at her, his gold eyes glittering. He surveyed her, then returned to the game. He hit the final ball, grinning and exposing pointed teeth.

His companion cursed, pulling a fifty from his jeans and handing it over. They shared a laugh, then headed for the detectives.

Kiba waved for the bartender as he greeted the pair. “One of these days, you’re going to lose your shirt, Jack.”

The one who’d lost money gave him a grin. “Never happen. I know when to stop.” He nudged the other man. “Unlike idiot here.” He brushed his shoulder length black hair back as his green eyes twinkled.

The other man rolled his eyes, his attention fixed on Andy. “Who’s this?”

Kiba waited until the bartender had left the drinks and retreated before answering. “My partner. Keep your teeth off, Conner.”

The two grinned, taking swigs of their beers in unison.

Andy watched them a moment before glancing back around the room.

“Seems a bit nervous to me. Something we should know?” The gold eyed biker raised an eyebrow. His blonde hair was curly and he ran a hand through it as he waited for an answer.

“We had a bit of trouble. Got fired by the Chief and hunters are after the entire squad.”

The bikers cursed. “Kawata?”

Kiba nodded. “Bingo. We’re at the ranch for the foreseeable future. Cap had to rescue us from a facility.”

Conner snarled, Jack placing a hand on his shoulder and locking eyes with him. After a minute, the blond nodded reluctantly and took a drink. Then he started staring at Andy.

“What?” She asked.

He shook his head, continuing to stare. 

Suddenly she felt someone in her head.

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Conner’s eyes began glowing dimly. He gave her a slow smile.

She watched him for a minute, still confused as to what was going on.

His voice suddenly whispered. “Kiss me.” His lips didn’t move.

She rolled her eyes at him in response.

His smile grew wider as he disappeared from her mind. He turned to Kiba. “She can resist us. Nice pick.”

Kiba let out a sigh of relief. “Thanks. I was worried that one would lure her for her gift.”

Conner’s eyebrow went up. “She’s gifted as well as beautiful?” 

Andy rolled her eyes again and sighed, “You guys can stop talking like I’m not here you know.”

Kiba blushed and the two bikers laughed. “Forgive us. What is your gift?”

“I can heal.”

Jack’s eyes went wide. “Heal humans or gifteds?”

“Both.”

Conner whistled. “That’s rare and valuable. Be careful the hunters don’t try to sell you.” He leaned back with a wince and took a small flask from his jacket. He took a quick drink, shaking his head at the concerned look Jack sent him.

Jack scowled, rising and waving Kiba and Tet aside.

Andy looked at Conner, “Is healing really that rare?”

“Not healing per say. Someone who can heal both humans and Gifteds are. Usually healers can only do one or the other.” He watched the three men talking quietly and sighed. “Jack worries too much.”

“What’s he worried about?”

“Me.” Conner shifted in his chair, his jacket and shirt riding up to expose reddining bandages. He caught her eye, quickly changing position.

“What happened?” She wondered.

“Arrested a shifter drug gang. One decided to let his displeasure be known.” Conner took another drink from the flask with a scowl.

“Do you want me to help heal you?”

His eyes went wide. “I wasn’t going to ask since you work with them. Don’t want to get in trouble.” He took a shaky breath, then nodded. “I was going to see a healer after this, but I don’t think it can wait.” His face was pained. “Anything I need to do?”

She stood and shook her head, moving next to him and raising her hands up to start healing him. “So how long have you known Kiba?”

“Ten years. We met in the Gifted Academy. They tried to keep us segregated but couldn’t.”

“Gifted Academy?”

“Our version of police training. Gods forbid we train with humans. The idiots in charge think we’re all bloodthirsty monsters. So they train us separately so we can police ourselves. Set up anti fraternization rules so we can’t band together. Think the humans believe we’ll join forces and eat them all in the night. Never mind the fact that we usually just want to be left alone like everyone else.”

“So.. what are you two exactly?” Andy asked. “Are you shifters too?”

He laughed, flashing fangs. “No. We’re vampires. And before you freak, Dracula is a load of _utter_ bullshit. We don’t survive by draining virgins.” 

Andy chuckled in response, finishing up healing him. “How do you feel?”

He paused for a moment, then gave her a grateful smile. “Pretty damned good. Once I get a nap, I’ll be fine. Thank you.” He blushed slightly. “I want to apologize about earlier. Kiba was worried one of us might be able to lure you away. He asked me to test you.”

“It’s fine. And you’re welcome,” she moved back to her original seat. 

Kiba returned to the table, Jack trailing behind. “I filled Jack in on the details. I’d like you guys to keep an eye out for any hunter groups hanging around. We’re not looking forward to having to dodge them while hunting Kawata.”

Conner nodded in understanding. “No worries. If we can’t take care of them, we’ll let you know. And if you need help, just yell.” He grinned at Andy.

She gave him a small smile before glancing at Kiba.

Kiba grinned, then looked at Tet. “We have a few leads to run down. Why don’t you two come out to the ranch in a couple of hours? Unless Andy wants to stick around?”

Andy shrugged, “I’m up for whatever.”

Kiba raised an eyebrow, then motioned her over to the door.

She went over, looking up at him, “What?”

He kissed her cheek. “You healed him right?”

She nodded, raising an eyebrow at the kiss.

He blushed slightly, then sobered. “Thanks. I don’t want to annoy him, but the shifter he arrested was bailed out and is looking to add his teeth to a trophy wall. I’d appreciate if you’d stick around just in case?”

“Okay. What are you going to do?”

“Hopefully find a link between Kawata and the Chief.” He smiled at her. “We’ll be careful, I swear. Sorry about the kiss, couldn’t help myself.”

“Are you sure you don’t need help?”

“We’re just staking out a few locations of Kawata’s. It will probably be boring and lead nowhere.” He squeezed her shoulder and went out the door.

Andy sighed, going to sit back down.

Tet gave her a wave as he walked by. “I’ll keep him safe.”

Andy nodded in response, giving a silent prayer they'd both stay safe.

Conner chuckled. “He ditched you. What a jerk.” He drained his beer as Jack headed for the bar. “Want me to bite him?”

Andy laughed, “Maybe.”

The vampire laughed. “I like you. Mind a personal question? Feel free to kick me in the balls if I overstep.”

“Okay,” she shrugged.

“Are you and him-?”

“We’re just work partners.” She blushed slightly before sighing, “Though now we don’t actually have jobs...”

Jack chuckled. “Don’t worry. You’ll be back to work in no time.” He placed a beer in front of her before seating himself.

“I hope so,” she took a sip of the beer.

The two men exchanged glances, then Conner cleared his throat. “So how’d you discover your gift?”

“When I was really young, I remember my dad accidentally cut himself while cooking. I was trying to help him bandage it and wishing it would stop bleeding, when my hands started glowing and the wound vanished,” she looked down. 

“That must have been a shock.” Jack took a drink, rolling the bottle between his fingers.

“Yeah. Unfortunately, when I was younger I could only heal small wounds. It wasn’t until recently that I managed to heal anything major.”

Conner was silent a moment, then spoke softly. “Kiba acted like it wasn’t a big deal, but something happened at that facility, didn’t it?” His eyes were troubled.

Andy took a deep breath, “A few different things happened, I guess. But the biggest was, he was practically dead but somehow I managed to heal him.”

Both vampires stared at her in shock. 

Jack’s voice was low. “You mean you revived him?”

Connor cursed under his breath.

Andy nodded slowly, staring at the bottle in front of her.

“Think we can talk Tsukasa into us hanging around?” Conner whispered to his partner.

“Sure going to try.” Jack scowled. “They’ll definitely be after her now.”

Andy sighed and took another sip, staying quiet.

Conner forced a smile and tapped her hand. “Would you rather we took you back to the ranch?”

Andy shrugged, “Kiba wanted me to stay with you guys, so I guess I’ll do whatever you are doing.”

“Not sure you’re the type to enjoy getting drunk in the middle of the afternoon.” Jack chuckled.

Andy gave a small smile, “Yeah, not entirely.”

The door opened and a smaller man entered. He was wearing a gray suit, a gold dress shirt visible under the jacket. A bulge under the shoulder identified him as armed. He paused at the bar a moment before he slid into an empty chair beside the vampires. “Bonjour.”

Andy raised an eyebrow at him, but stayed silent.

Both men grinned at the new arrival. “Hi, Kenji.”

Kenji chuckled, turning his attention to Andy. “Mademoiselle. It is a wonderful day indeed, isn’t it?” He flashed her a smile, his fangs visible.

Andy gave him a small smile in response.

“Ooh la la. What has such a beautiful woman such as yourself depressed? Can I aid you in some way?”

Andy gave a small chuckle and shook her head, “It’s just been a long couple of days. I’m Andy, nice to meet you.”

“If there’s anything I can do, don’t hesitate to ask. I am Kenji Tanaka.” He gently kissed her hand as his drink arrived.

Conner rolled his eyes, sipping his beer. “Take the half Frenchman out of France, but he never really leaves.”

Andy watched him a moment before taking another sip of her beer.

Kenji took a sip of his wine before sighing. “You three are more depressing than watching a bad chef cook. What is the problem?”

Jack shrugged, proceeding to inform him of Kiba’s visit.

When he was done, Kenji frowned. “So Kawata upped the ante, the powers that be are attempting to tie the squad’s proverbial hands and my sweet cherie Andy here may be the target of more than hunters after the normal bounties.”

Andy chuckled before sighing, “Pretty much.”

He gave her a soft smile. “Don’t fret. We will all protect you.” He toasted her with his glass. 

“I’m more worried about keeping everyone else safe, honestly,” she admitted. 

Conner squeezed her shoulder gently. As he released it, a little round cylinder broke the window. It landed near her feet, then a puff of smoke erupted from it.

Kenji kicked it away, pulling her to her feet. He yelled for the other two, instructing them to head for the back door. The French vampire began to cough as the smoke got thicker. He handed Andy a handkerchief. “It’s sleeping gas. Try to hold your breath.” He kept pushing her forward towards Conner.

She tried to hold her breath as she moved, coughing- a moment before taking another breath and holding it. She tried to look around but could barely see through the smoke.

Kenji’s hands vanished suddenly, but Conner grabbed her and they emerged from the bar into a small parking lot. A familiar van was idly nearby.

Conner growled, his face transforming as his fangs grew. He flew toward the driver, dragging him into the darkness of the van’s interior.

Andy watched, keeping an eye out for any attackers, drawing her gun out just in case.

Several familiar men came charging out of the bar, coughing angrily. When they saw her, they pointed and approached.

Andy started shooting at them as she backed up quickly.

Two went down hard, the other three pausing. They looked over her shoulder, then screamed in terror and ran.

Andy took a deep breath and lowered her gun before turning.

Conner’s face quickly returned to normal, the vampire hurriedly wiping it with a cloth that he tossed into the van. “Are you alright?”

She nodded, “I’m fine.”

He gave her a small smile before darting into the bar. He returned with their companions, gently laying them on the ground. “Are they?”

Andy scanned both of them over, “They’re just knocked out. They should be fine.”

Conner nodded. “Okay. This settles it. We’re going to the ranch. Tsukasa won’t mind us helping out, I don’t think. But you need to get off the street for now.” He gently picked Kenji and Jack up and took them to an SUV parked nearby. He retrieved the keys from Kenji’s pocket, unlocking the door and getting the two inside before looking at Andy. “Climb in.”

Andy did as instructed, buckling herself into the passenger side seat.

Conner climbed into the driver’s side and started the engine. He remained quiet as he drove, his jaw muscle twitching angrily.

A cell phone began to ring.

Andy glanced around and found it, “Should we answer?”

He nodded. “Find out if it’s important.”

“Hello?” Andy spoke into the phone.

“Andy? Why are you answering Kenji’s phone?” Tetsuya’s voice was panicked.

“He was knocked out with sleeping gas... What’s going on?”

“They hit the bar too?” Tet growled.

“Yeah. Are you guys okay?”

“If I say no, are you going to freak out on me?”

Andy took a deep breath, “I’ll try not to. Do you need us to come get you?”

“Yeah. We got run off the road. Help us..” His voice grew faint, then the phone went silent.

“We have to find them,” Andy spoke, trying to control the panic in her voice.

Conner gritted his teeth, then stopped the car. He took the phone from her, raising it to his ear. After a minute, he closed it and restarted the car. He sped toward a location only he knew.

Ten minutes later, he stomped on the brakes as Tet’s car came into view. It was lying on its roof, smoke filling the interior as the engine flamed.

Andy got out and rushed toward it, trying to see through the smoke to get them out.

Conner beat her to it, ripping the doors off the hinges as he reached in. His hands tore the seatbelts away, tightly gripping the two men and pulling them free.

He moved away from the car, gently placing them on the grass. He grimaced as he saw their injuries.

Kiba was unconscious, a large bruise already darkening on his right temple. Blood trickled from his lips and the vampire pushed down the urge it brought out in him. He gently examined the shifter and cursed as he felt the shattered ribs.

He turned to Tet, eyes going wide at the sight of a gunshot wound in his friend’s chest. 

“Somebody shot him..”

Andy cursed and rushed to Tetsuya’s side, starting the healing process and closing up the wound so he wouldn’t bleed out. She continued to heal him before moving to Kiba and working on him for a few minutes.

“They’re safe enough to move now, let’s get out of here and I’ll keep healing them in the car.”

Conner nodded, moving them to the car, then climbing back in and heading for the ranch. He quickly dialed Tsukasa, curtly informing him of the attacks and their eta before hanging up and looking at her through the rear mirror.

Andy focused on healing Kiba’s ribs before moving onto the bruise on his head. She glanced at him, wishing he’d wake up before moving back to healing Tetsuya.

Conner parked outside the ranch, exiting the car as Tsukasa and Daiki ran out. Between the three of them, they got the four unconscious men into the house and settled.

Tsukasa took a deep breath, attempting to quell his anger. “I’m going with your plan, Conner. Round the clock watches, no one goes out alone. Andy always accompanied by at least two of us. Will your clan help?”

Conner shrugged. “Given that all of us owe our lives to you guys at least once? Of course.” He stepped outside, dialing his phone.

Tsukasa rejoined Daiki and Andy. “How are they?”

“Everyone should be fine,” Andy answered.

“What happened? Last I knew, you were at the bar and they were headed to stake out the gentleman’s club.”

“They were headed there?” Andy growled. “They threw a thing of sleeping gas into the bar. Then I shot a couple guys before Conner scared the rest off. Then, we got a call from Tetsuya about their car being run off the road.”

Tsukasa and Daiki’s eyes flared red for a moment before normalizing. “Anyone familiar in the group that attacked you?”

“Yeah, I know I’ve seen at least a couple before.”

The pair forced themselves to stay calm. “As soon as they’re awake, we need an attack plan.”

Conner stalked in, his face a mask of rage. “May our clan join you?”

“What’s wrong?” Andy wondered why he was even more angry than before.

“They attacked our home with fire. Some of the clan were killed. They kidnapped our youngest and told my seconds they were going to torture him on live tv.”

Andy growled, “That’s terrible.”

Tsukasa began to shift in fury. He fought for control, finally stopping the change and slamming his fist through the wall. “He declared war on every non human in the city. Is he insane or does he think he’s untouchable?”

“He probably thinks he’s untouchable.”

“Let’s see if he still thinks that way after tonight.” Conner’s smile was feral.

“Daiki? What happened?” Kiba blinked woozily at his brother.

“Kiba! Don’t move, okay? Andy!”

Kiba grimaced at the pounding in his head. He tried to concentrate on the wavering surroundings as Andy ran in.

Andy entered, taking a look at Kiba, “Calm down.” She scanned him over again, trying to help ease the pain in his head.

“Tet? He was hurt..” The detective tried to rise, but the pain made him clench his eyes shut.

“He’ll be fine. Now lay down and let me help you.”

“You’re angry. What’s wrong?” He lay back, trying to regulate his breathing.

Andy was quiet for a minute as she focused, then sighed, “Conner’s clan was attacked too.” 

“Tell me the rest.” His eyes began to flicker from brown to crimson and back.

She continued to work on helping his headache, “Some were killed. One was kidnapped. The others are talking and a plan will be made when you guys are all awake.”

Kiba growled low in his throat as Conner entered the room. “Who was taken and why?”

Conner’s voice was tight. “Shouma. They are planning to torture him to death on tv.”

Kiba rose, his transformation beginning violently.

“Kiba, calm down. We need clear heads to make a plan, right?” Andy spoke gently.

The shifter trembled as he tried to stop. Finally, he reverted with a cry. He held his head as he collapsed to his knees.

Andy went to him and raised her hands up, trying to help his head as well as sending soothing energy to try to calm him further. 

Conner turned Kiba’s eyes to his. “Sleep.”

The shifter’s eyes fluttered closed.

The vampire picked him up, replacing him on the bed before looking at Andy. “Shouma is Kiba’s best friend. I shouldn’t have told him.”

Andy looked at him sadly, “He’d have to find out eventually, right?” She moved to the chair next to the bed, “I’ll keep an eye on him.”

The vampire gave her a small smile, then left the room as there was a knock on the door.

Tsukasa opened it to admit what was left of Conner’s clan.

Jack groaned a few seconds before Kenji’s eyes blinked open.

Andy headed over to them, giving Kenji a small smile, “How are you feeling?”

“Groggy but unharmed.” He glanced around at the other men. “What happened?”

“Tetsuya’s car was run off the road.”

“Am I right in assuming we are teaming up to punish Kawata for these transgressions?” 

“Yeah, once everyone’s awake.”

His eyes narrowed as a set of twins took up guard positions near the window. “Yoshi? Rei? What is going on?”

Conner entered. “The clan was attacked. Kawata has Shouma and is threatening him. The rest of the clan were killed.”

Kenji’s eyes turned silver as he clenched his fists. “He has nerve. Too bad it can’t save him.”

Andy sighed, moving back to the seat next to Kiba’s bed.

Tsukasa paced worriedly. “Should we leave them here? I don’t want to give Kawata time to set up anything.”

Conner sighed. “Kiba would never forgive us. He made a promise over Tomoko’s grave.”

“Do we even know where to find him?” Andy asked.

“The soundstage downtown. He’s given us until midnight.”

Conner touched a finger to the necklace Kiba wore, a sad smile on his face. The vampire turned away, tears on his eyelashes.

“Just go in guns blazing or are we making an actual plan?”

“We have a plan, more or less.” Tsukasa took a deep breath. “Kuwata has telekinesis. Unknown if any of his men are gifted. We all are gifted. We know he wants a fight, so he’ll get one. Andy, you’re the most disadvantaged of us. I’d like to ask you to save Shouma. Don’t fight, please. Kawata has had multiple opportunities to kill you, yet he keeps trying to grab you. I don’t want him doing it. So sneak in, grab Shouma and Daiki will get you out. Once you two are safe, don’t come back until I contact you.”

Andy sighed, “I’d rather help fight, but fine, I’ll try to stay out of it.”

Tsukasa walked over to her. “I’m just worried why he keeps trying to grab you. Are you sure you can only heal?”

“As far as I know, yes.” 

He frowned, then bowed his head. “If you really want to fight, fight. Daiki is probably a better choice to guard Shouma anyway.”

Tetsuya grimaced as he began to sit up. “When I get my hands on that asshole…”

The captain rolled his eyes. “Get checked out and you just might get your chance.”

He moved to Kiba’s side, tapping his fingers impatiently.

Andy watched Kiba sleeping for a minute, trying to figure out why Kawata would want her. 

“I’m fine.” Tet began to get out of bed, swaying slightly.

Andy went over to him, scanning him over, “You’ll be fine, just rest a bit until Kiba’s awake and we’re all ready, okay?”

Tet gave her a smile, sitting down. “Kiba okay? He didn’t look good after the crash.”

“He’ll be okay. I healed him up.”

As if on cue, Kiba’s eyes fluttered open. He looked around slowly before meeting her eyes. “Hey.”

She gave him a small smile, “Hey.”

Tsukasa sighed. “Guess it’s time to go.”

Everyone assembled in the living room, then headed for the vehicles.

Andy was in the SUV with the vampires and Kiba while the rest were in another car.

Kiba looked at her quietly, then took her hand. He appeared confident, until you saw his eyes flickering.

“It’ll be fine. Everything will work out,” she tried to assure. She grasped his hand back tightly and gave him a small smile.

“Just don’t get hurt. I can’t go through that again.” His voice was shaky.

Andy nodded, “Tell me, what was your last partner like? You don’t talk about them much.”

“She was a lot like you. Confident, fearless, always putting others first. She was so loyal..” He took a deep breath. “She was the first to believe my suspicion about Kawata..and it got her killed. Left Shouma an orphan.” He rubbed his face with his other hand. “Now the bastard has him.. I can’t let him or you die.”

“Don’t worry, Daiki is going to get Shouma out of there and I can fend for myself. We’ll make it through.” Andy said confidently. She looked out the window a moment before looking back, “When all this blows over, want to go get a drink?”

He chuckled. “Thought you didn’t date coworkers?”

“I could make an exception. If we even get our jobs back.”

He gave her a smile. “I’d love to get a drink with you.”

Conner slowed the car. “Sorry to interrupt, but we’re almost there.”

Andy nodded, back to looking serious. 

A few minutes later, the car stopped and they climbed out, meeting up with the others.

Tsukasa held a smoke bomb in one hand. “When this goes off, Daiki, you grab Shouma and scram. The rest of you, attack.”

Everyone nodded before the shifters transformed and the vampires changed.

“3,2,1.” Tsukasa pulled the door open and tossed in the canister. It popped, red smoke beginning to fill the room.

Daiki vanished, then Tsukasa shifted, becoming the largest cat Andy had ever seen. He ran in, followed by the others.

Andy rushed in, pulling her gun out and keeping an eye out for enemies.

Kawata could be heard shouting for his men to attack.

Five suddenly appeared in front of her, aiming machine guns toward the vampires who were attacking several more men. They began to squeeze the triggers slowly, laughing.

Andy shot at them quickly, taking them out one by one until they were all down. She went ahead, looking for more to take out.

Kiba flew by her, slamming into the wall. He sat down, shaking his head slowly.

“You okay?” 

“Give me a second.” He closed his eyes briefly.

There was the sound of a weapon being cocked.

Andy looked around quickly, trying to find where the noise came from.

A laughing gang member aimed a grenade launcher at the dragon. He began to pull the trigger as Kiba’s eyes opened wide.

Andy knew she couldn’t shoot him in time, so she rushed in front of Kiba and growled, “I won’t let you hurt him.” As soon as the grenade was launched, both it and the shooter were flung over into the other wall.

She stared in confusion, unsure what just happened.

Kiba’s jaw dropped open for a second, then he called her name. “Andy, hey. You with me?” He slowly rose, shaking his wings with a wince.

She turned slowly, “What?”

He chuckled. “Thanks for that. Now, get your head together. We need to find Kawata.”

There was a cry of pain somewhere in the smoke and Kiba stiffened. “That was Tet.” He charged forward and disappeared.

Andy headed forward, keeping her eyes open for Kawata.

A wolf’s body blocked her path as the smoke began to dissipate. Two vampires lay face down on a pile of gang members as well. 

Andy knelt beside them, starting to work on healing. She kept her eyes trained ahead but her focus was mainly on fixing the injuries.

The wolf finally reverted, revealing it to be Ryon. The vampires were identified as the twins Conner had brought to the ranch.

There was a flash from further ahead, then an explosion. Someone large flew past her on fire, slamming into the wall.

Andy rushed over, putting the fire out.

Yellow and black charred fur met her shocked eyes.

She started working on healing the burns, trying to lessen the damage.

“Kaw..ata has..Kiba..” The words were halting, Tsukasa’s eyes glazed with pain. “Stop..him.”

Kiba let out a horrified scream amid the sound of weapons fire.

Andy rushed toward the scream, hoping to get to Kiba in time. She finally spotted him and Kawata. She approached, gun drawn.

The bodies of her friends lay in a heap by one wall. Kiba was tangled in what looked like netting, the strands cutting into him as he struggled to get free.

Kawata stood near him, laughing maniacally. “Detective Kaito.. Once more your stubbornness has led to your friends dying. How does it feel?”

Kiba was trembling, his eyes glowing. “I’m going to kill you, you bastard!”

Kawata aimed a sword at him. “That’s not going to happen.” He stretched his arm out, idly slashing the dragon’s wing. A large cut began to pulse blood as the gang leader smiled sadistically. He quickly slashed the other wing.

Kiba’s eyes began to blink slowly as a puddle of blood swelled beneath him.

Andy began shooting at Kawata, hoping her shots would hit.

He jerked, his head rising to see her. “You.. I will own you. I will be immortal.”

Kiba weakly yelled “Get out of here! He’s got a bomb rigged under me!”

Andy rushed toward Kiba, trying to get him free from the netting. She kept her eyes on Kawata, shooting at him again when he got close.

The gang leader collapsed to his knees as a figure appeared at Andy’s side.

Ryusei was shaking, several gunshot wounds visible. The teen stubbornly ignored everything as he examined the bomb. Quickly disregarding the tangle of wires, he grabbed a red one and snipped it with the cutters clenched in his hand. Suddenly he stiffened, his dazed eyes meeting hers before he tumbled back, a sword in his chest.

Kawata gave her a smile through blood stained teeth. He struggled to stand.

Andy got closer to Kawata, shooting him from a closer range, at least one bullet hitting him in the chest.

She then finished getting Kiba down, kneeling beside him and working on healing him. She watched him for a minute before moving over to Ryusei. The teen lay still, his eyes staring at her blankly. She gently closed them, pulling the sword free as tears ran down her face. 

She made her way through the room, healing her friends and attempting to revive the ones that hadn’t made it. She fought the exhaustion overtaking her as she continued. She went back to Ryusei, thinking about how much he didn’t want to die. She struggled to heal the wounds between how bad they were and her power weakening as she continued. She cried as she fought to revive him, breathing a sigh of relief when he finally sucked in a breath. Now that everyone was breathing again, she went back over to Kiba. She checked him once more before collapsing to the ground.

Daiki suddenly appeared beside her, his eyes wide at the carnage. Sirens could be heard in the distance as he gently touched her. “Stay with me, Andy. It’s over. Help’s on the way.” He cradled her, marveling at her power as the EMTs flooded the building.

Andy struggled to stay conscious but was soon taken over by the darkness.

There was the sound of humming and soft conversation alternated with a voice praying and calling her name.

She slowly came back to consciousness, trying to focus on the voices. She finally, slowly, blinked her eyes open and tried to look around.

“Hey, you finally with me?” Kiba gave her a soft cautious smile. He had one of her hands wrapped in both of his as he sat beside her bed.

She nodded slowly, “How long have I been out?”

“Almost two weeks. I got pretty scared.” He gazed at her softly. “You’re amazing, you know that? The doctors are beside themselves trying to figure out how everyone survived.”

Andy gave a small chuckle, “How is everyone doing?”

“The vampires are home. Almost all the shifters are too. It’s down to you and our troublesome teen.” He gave her a smile. “Tsukasa refuses to go back to work until the two of you are released. I warned him, it’s not a good idea to give the new Chief second thoughts this early.”

“Where is Ryusei?” 

“Next door. Ryon hasn’t left his side.”

Andy pushed herself out of bed, swaying slightly before heading to the door.

“Whoa partner. You just woke up.” Kiba wrapped his arm around her waist for support.

“I want to see him,” she said as she continued to walk out the door.

“Alright. Just take it slow.” Kiba opened the adjoining door, giving Ryon a smile. 

The wolf’s eyes were bloodshot, his face tired. He kept a tight grip on the teen’s limp hand.

Ryusei wore an oxygen mask, the monitor steadily beeping. His color was back, no longer the pale body in the soundstage she’d fought to heal.

Andy went to his side, checking him over. She raised her hands and focused on him, hoping to help him wake.

His vitals hiccuped, then began showing faster. His eyelids began to twitch before his eyes opened. He stared at her for a minute before removing the mask. “What happened? Wasn’t there a bomb?”

“I think you stopped it,” Andy answered. 

“Oh. Is everyone okay?”

“Everyone’s fine, don’t worry,” she smiled softly before stepping back a bit. She was a little shaky, but continued to smile at him, happy she helped him.

“Okay. Back to bed.” Kiba led her back, pushing her into the bed. “Do you want to know what happened or wait till you’re stronger?”

“Tell me,” she answered as she pulled up the blanket.

“We were right. The Chief _was_ protecting Kawata. Turns out he was the Chief’s son by one of his many affairs. Kawata kept meticulous notes. Daiki went to arrest him, but he’s disappeared. So, there’s a new Chief, whose first order of business was reinstating all of us. We also got bonuses and commendation. We’re no longer a trial program either. Full fledged squad now. And like I said, Tsukasa refuses to return until all of us do. So, are you willing to work with a squad full of crazy Gifteds?”

Andy chuckled and nodded, “I can’t wait to get back to work. And my house.”

Kiba laughed. “Does the date still stand? Feeling a little thirsty.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

She smiled, “Yeah, we can go once I’m released.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Six months later**

Andy unlocked the door, grabbing the mail before heading into her house followed by Kiba. She skimmed through the bills, frowning when she found a letter. She opened it, growling quietly to herself before setting the mail on the table. She turned and gave Kiba a small smile, “I already prepped dinner this morning so I just have to throw it in and then in a bit we can eat. Want to start the movie?”

“Sounds good to me. Take my mind off how much I wanted to throttle that defense attorney in court today.” He grinned as he reached for the remote and the disc sleeve. “If I had to hear him ask me to prove my hearing one more time..” He playfully mimed popping his skull.

She smiled before heading into the kitchen to stick the food in the oven.

The previews began to play as he toed his shoes off and curled up on the couch. He closed his eyes as he waited for her to join him.

She soon reentered the living room, sitting next to him on the couch and staring at the tv. Her eyes kept glancing toward the letter and she sighed, trying to get into the movie to take her mind off of it.

“You’re distracted.” He gently began to massage her shoulders. “What’s the matter?”

“It’s nothing,” she sighed. “At least I hope it’s nothing.”

“That sounds ominous.” He raised an eyebrow at her. “You want a drink to relax?”

She nodded, not talking about it further.

He rose and headed for the fridge, returning with two opened beers. He handed her one, then resumed his spot, curling his feet under him. He took a drink, then studied her over his bottle silently.

She took a drink, staring at the tv, still trying to forget about the letter. The oven went off and she quickly headed to the kitchen to check on the food.

He sighed, pausing the movie. He nursed his beer slowly, wishing he could get her to forget whatever was bugging her. He finally uncurled, padding into the kitchen behind her. “Need any help?”

She smiled and handed him a full plate, “Nope, all done.”

He grinned at her, then moved back to the couch. “Whenever you’re ready.”

She sat down and started eating, finally fully focusing on the movie.

He took a deep breath, starting to eat.

After the movie, Andy took their plates and headed to the kitchen to start washing the plates.

Kiba leaned against the doorway, watching her with a smile. His eyes strayed to the mail, finally moving to the table and picking up the open letter.

It mentioned that a woman with the same last name as Andy was getting released from jail.

He frowned, debating if he should say anything. He finally decided against it, setting the paper back down. He moved back to the doorway, his eyes focused appreciatively on her backside. He grinned wide, finally finishing his beer.

Putting the bottle in for recycling, he wrapped his arms around her waist and laid his head on her shoulder after kissing her cheek. “You have any clue how happy you make me?”

She smiled, “You make me happy too. Thank you for coming over for dinner.”

“Of course. Anything to save me from my brother’s cooking.” He mock shuddered, then laughed. “If you had told me six months ago we’d be like this I’d have asked what you were smoking.”

She chuckled, “Definitely not what I expected, but I’m glad things worked out this way.”

He kissed her for a minute, then pulled away. “You want me to stay?”

She smiled softly, “Yeah.”

“Good answer.” He kissed her again.

She smiled and pushed him against the counter playfully as she kissed him harder.

He responded by picking her up and carrying her up to the bedroom, closing the door with a foot.

A few hours later, they were cuddled up sleeping when Andy started crying in her sleep.

He rubbed his eyes sleepily, then shook her gently. “Andy? Sweetheart, wake up.”

She started mumbling, not responding to him.

He sighed, then grabbed and shook her hard. “Andy, wake up!”

She woke quickly, looking around in confusion as she slightly shook.

He cuddled her close, wiping some of her tears with his thumb. “You want to talk about it?”

She took a deep breath, “Not really. Sorry if I woke you. It’s been a while since I’ve had that nightmare..”

He gave her a sad smile, kissing her forehead gently. “It’s not a problem. And if you want to, I’m here to listen.”

She nodded, “I know, thank you. I’d rather just leave the past in the past, you know?”

He smiled wryly. “I’m the king of shoving things in a box and hiding it down a deep hole. No need to explain. You calm enough to sleep?”

She took another deep breath before nodding, “I think so,” she kissed him quickly before settling in and closing her eyes.

He gave a small chuckle and followed her example.

The next morning, he rose before she did, quickly dressing before going downstairs and starting breakfast.

Andy woke and took a quick shower before getting dressed and heading down. 

He was plating the food, his eyes softening when he saw her. “Morning.”

She smiled, “Morning. Thanks for making breakfast.”

“No problem. Hey, have a legal question.”

She raised an eyebrow, “Isn’t it a bit early for work?”

He shrugged, handing her plate over. “Just wondering if the judge can give me a good plea deal if I kill the defense attorney in front of her?” He chuckled as he sat down.

Andy smirked, “I doubt it.”

He sighed exaggeratedly. “Damn. There goes my defense.” He drank some juice, then looked at her. “Never thought I’d actually miss stakeouts.”

Andy chuckled, “I’m sure we’ll have some eventually.”

“Before or after I go insane from testifying?”

She smiled as she ate. After a bit she glanced at the time, “We should probably get going.” 

He gave her a grin. “Wish me luck.”

Over the next couple weeks, he noticed her continuing to be distracted but she just kept saying it was nothing.

Andy woke early and made herself breakfast before packing a lunch for her and Kiba. She was meeting him at work that morning so she headed there on her bike.

“Hey, Andy! Where’s loverboy?” Daiki looked annoyed.

“I thought he was coming to work with you?” 

“He said he was going to your place last night. He never came home.” He began looking worried.

“He came over for a bit but then left...” she gave him a panicked look before calling Kiba’s phone. After no answer she cursed. 

“Calm down. We’ll have Ryusei ping his car.” Daiki headed for the genius’ lab. Ten minutes later, he returned. “Now panic. His car is showing up at the bottom of the rock quarry.”

Andy took a deep breath, about to answer when her phone beeped. She glanced and saw a message from Kiba’s phone, there was a location listed and the message, ‘Come alone.’

She looked up at Daiki, “I think I’ve found him. I’ll let you know.” She ran out of the office.

She headed to the location, slowly entering, gun drawn.

“Put that thing away,” an older woman ordered.

Andy froze at hearing the voice. She entered and saw Kiba tied up to a chair, looking like he was just waking up.

“What do you want?”

“Do I _have_ to want something to see you?”

“Usually,” Andy growled.

Kiba tried to make sense of the conversation through the haze in his head. The last thing he remembered was driving home after watching a movie with Andy. He tried to rub his eyes and grew alarmed at finding himself bound. “What the hell is going on here?”

“Don’t worry, as long as Daka here heals someone for me, you’ll be free in no time.”

Kiba growled, pulling at the ropes. “No way will she help you. Now let me go before you get into real trouble.”

Andy took a deep breath, “ _Why_ do you have someone who needs healed?”

“You know we can’t go to the hospital without being arrested.”

“It’s been two weeks! Can’t you go and enjoy your freedom without getting into more trouble?”

“What I do with my freedom is none of your business. Now will you help me or do I need to shoot him?”

Andy looked down, “Where?”

“In the other room. He was shot by the police.”

Kiba growled again. “Andy, don’t move. I don’t know who this is but they made a big mistake.” He closed his eyes and began to shift.

“Kiba, don’t.” Andy shook her head. 

“Oh, is he your boyfriend or your pet?” The woman raised an eyebrow with a chuckle.

Kiba opened his eyes, which were already crimson. “This will be over as soon as I get free.” His skin started to turn.

The woman backed up, looking at Andy. She shook her head, “Fine, don’t worry about it. Though next time I’ll know what I’m dealing with.” She slipped out of the room quickly, Andy making no move to stop her.

Kiba stopped in confusion. “Why didn’t you arrest her?”

Andy took a deep breath and shook her head before heading into the other room. She brought out the cuffed injured man before untying Kiba. She stayed silent other than a “let’s get out of here.”

Kiba glared at her once they were back at the office. He pushed her into an interrogation room and slammed the door. “What the _fuck_ just happened out there!?”

Andy started crying, muttering out, “I’m sorry.”

He ran his hands through his hair, then embraced her. “I shouldn’t have yelled. I was just so scared. It was like we were back with..” He trailed off, resting his head on her shoulder.

“I’m sorry you got dragged into that. It was my fault..” she continued crying.

“We’re in this together. Just don’t shut me out. If I’m going to get shot, I should at least know why.” He wiped her tears away.

“As long as I do what she wants, she won’t hurt you.”

“Who is she? And she’s not going to make you do anything.” He lifted her chin. “Spill.”

“She’s my mother..”

Kiba’s mouth opened and closed wordlessly. He just stood there for a minute, then shook his head. “Why is she coming to you?”

“Because, if she had taken him to the hospital, they’d both be arrested.”

“So she’s a criminal?” He raised an eyebrow and sat on the table edge.

“If that’s not already obvious just by the kidnapping, yes.”

“I meant, this isn’t just a desperate act? This is a pattern?”

“She’s been in jail most of my life..”

“Oh sweetheart..” Kiba hugged her tighter. “She’s not going to hurt either one of us, you hear me? We’re going to find her first.” 

Andy nodded, “She was just let out a couple weeks ago. I thought maybe this time she’d be different..”

He sighed heavily. “Give her info to genius boy. Guarantee he’ll find her before the end of work. You want me to go with you?”

Andy wiped at her face, “I’ll be okay, I think.. I’m sorry..”

“Stop apologizing. Let me know when you’re done and I’ll take you to lunch. My treat.” He checked his watch. “Dammit. I have to go meet the prosecution for the Ban case.” He kissed her quickly, then headed out the door.

Andy sat there a while longer before heading out to Ryusei’s desk.

The teen eyed her critically, frowning. “What’s wrong? You look awful.”

“Yeah, it’s been an... interesting morning,” she admitted. “I need you to look up anything you can find on a Saki Takimoto.”

He raised an eyebrow but remained silent at the name, typing quickly. “Want to wait?”

She sat down with a sigh, “I need mainly anything you can find within the last two weeks.”

He started typing again, his eyes focused on the screen. A few minutes later, he looked at her. “Who is this woman? She’s damn near invisible. Only thing I found was a parole address.” He swiveled the screen to show her.

Andy looked thoughtful, “She’s probably using a new name..”

“I’ll run her description through security cameras and the like. But it’ll take awhile.”

Tet stalked up to her. “Where is he?”

Andy froze, “Kiba..? He was supposed to be meeting with a prosecutor..”

“I know. I’ve been waiting for half an hour. We were supposed to go over testimony together. He never showed.”

Her breathing quickened, sinking back into the chair.

Tet’s eyes narrowed. “What’s wrong?”

“She took him again...” she struggled to breathe.

Ryusei stared at her. “Saki Takimoto? What do you mean again?”

Kiba groaned as he felt the needle stick his arm again. He’d lost count of how many injections he’d been given since he woke up from the chloroform. His head was full of cobwebs and he couldn’t think straight. Finally he gave in to the drugs, his head slumping to the floor of the car trunk.

Andy stared at the floor in front of her as she tried to get the air to speak again. She finally whispered out, “She took him this morning. If he’d have listened it would have been fine, but he didn’t.”

Tetsuya rolled his eyes. “What else is new? What is this all about?”

“She just wants my help.. If I help her he’ll be safe..”

Ryusei snorted. “Please don’t tell me you believe that shit.”

“I _know_ her. She lies about a lot of things, but I believe her on this..”

“Fine. That means she’s going to contact you right?”

She nodded slowly.

Tetsuya looked thoughtful. “Pretty sure the best bet is to do whatever she wants until we get him back. Then we arrest her and any accomplices she might have.”

As if on cue, Andy’s phone beeped. She glanced at the message before standing up quickly. 

“Go. But let us know what’s going on alright?” The detectives sighed. “Bring both of you back safe.”

Andy nodded before heading out the door. A car soon pulled up and she climbed in. She quickly pulled out her phone to the side where the driver couldn’t see and sent Ryusei her gps information before slipping the phone under the seat.

Ryusei’s eyes lit up as coordinates popped up on screen. He exchanged looks with Tetsuya and then they both headed for the parking lot.

Kiba’s eyes were so heavy. He felt a mask being fitted to his face, but he couldn’t open them to see what was happening. He soon lost consciousness again.

Andy arrived at a house, climbing out of the seat and heading inside. She saw her mother first before noticing someone else by her.

An older man pursed his lips in disapproval, quickly whispering to her mother before slipping out of the room.

A camera suddenly switched on, showing Kiba. He was straitjacketed, in a glass tank filled with water. He floated limply, a mask over his face.

Andy froze, “I thought you wouldn’t hurt him.”

“I wasn’t going to, but he insisted,” her mother answered. “I _am_ sorry, Daka.”

“I’m not going to help you,” Andy growled.

“I was hoping you’d join me. I know we haven’t spent a lot of time together, and I want to change that.”

“It’s a little late for that! After dad... all I wanted was you. But no, you weren’t there. I don’t want you now.”

Her mother sighed, “Please Daka.”

Andy started crying, and her mother went over and hugged her as she sobbed. Andy wanted to push her away but she also wanted the hug not to end.

Tet and Ryusei pulled up outside the house. The dragon dialed Andy’s number, holding his breath.

The older gentleman returned scowling. He stood tapping his foot impatiently. “What a touching reunion. I take it she’s agreed to come with us?” He finally pulled a cell phone from his pocket and dialed. When the call connected, he simply said “Reverse the flow.”

Andy felt her mother reach into her pocket before watching her turn and quickly shoot the man. 

Andy watched in shock and confusion.

Kiba’s eyes suddenly flew open as bubbles began floating around him. He thrashed wildly, his eyes dimming as he sank to the bottom of the tank.

“He’s downstairs, go get him,” her mother ordered. 

Andy finally moved, taking the gun and running to Kiba’s location. She struggled to get him out but finally did, laying him down and getting the mask off. She checked him over and started trying to get the water from his lungs. She finally got it out and got him breathing again when she started struggling to keep his vitals normal. She realized he had a lot of sedative in his body and she quickly lifted him and brought him up the stairs before continuing to try to stabilize him. The other man was now dead on the floor, her mother no longer in the room.

The front door burst open, Ryusei and Tet racing in. Tet crouched next to her as the teen called an ambulance. “What happened?”

“He was drowning.. but right now he needs something to counteract the sedatives in his system.”

Tet ran out again, reappearing a few moments later with a syringe. He quickly injected the contents. “That should help.”

Andy found it easier to keep his vitals steady as the medicine worked through his body. She glanced up at Tet, “At least the Chief’s finally taken care of,” she motioned to the dead body on the floor.

He growled. “Good riddance.”

The EMTs arrived, getting Kiba ready for transport. They wheeled him out to the ambulance as Tet and Ryusei headed to the car. “We’ll tell Tsukasa what happened.”

“I’ll be with Kiba if you need me,” Andy answered before climbing into the ambulance. 

Once in the hospital Andy sat beside him, staring blankly trying to process everything that had happened.

He blinked his eyes open groggily. “Andy? You okay?”

“Yeah. How are you feeling?”

“Confused. Exhausted.” He fought to stay awake.

“Just keep resting, everything’s okay,” she spoke quietly.

He looked like he was going to argue, but then just nodded and let his eyes close.


	5. Chapter 5

**Two weeks later**

Tsukasa sighed, answering his landline as he skimmed another report. “Captain Kadoya.” The pen fell from his hand as he listened. “Thank you.” He managed to get out before hanging up. He fought to stay calm, then went to his door. “Andy! I need you _now_!”

Andy rushed to his office, “What’s going on?”

“You need to come with me to the M.E.’s office. We have a situation and I pray that you can fix it.” He grabbed his jacket and rested his head on her shoulder.

“Let’s go see what I can do,” Andy answered, trying to push away the worry.

Tsukasa nodded, leading her to his car and getting in. He took a deep breath and started the engine. “You ready?”

She nodded, wondering what was going on. She watched out the window as the car moved, hoping she’d be of help when they arrived.

He hurriedly parked, rushing into the building. He headed to one of the autopsy rooms, quickly stopping whatever was happening inside.

Andy followed, standing at the door looking in.

White sheets lay over three bodies.

Tsukasa was arguing with the coroner in frustration, finally drawing his gun and ordering him out of the room. He went over, pulling her in and locking the door after her. “I don’t know how long I can keep him out. Please…” He pulled the sheets back.

Andy gasped, seeing Ryusei, Shouma, and finally Kiba, lying there. 

She went to Kiba first, scanning him over and noticing a single gunshot wound. She scanned the other two and saw the same. She began to heal them up before working on reviving them. She started with Kiba, then moved to Shouma, and finally Ryusei. She swayed slightly, before looking up at Tsukasa, “They should be okay now.”

He steadied her, relief in his eyes. “Glad to hear. Now we need to get them to the car somehow.” He unlocked the door and growled. “Then we find the bastard that did this and end him.” His eyes flashed yellow before he got himself under control. “Can you walk?”

Andy nodded, focusing for a moment before lifting the three men with her telekinesis.

Tsukasa gave her a small smile before leaving the room and heading for the main door. He held it open as the coroner reappeared with a yell. “Let’s get out of here.”

She got the men out to the car, carefully setting them in the backseat before climbing into the passenger side. “Do we have any idea who did this?”

Tsukasa slid into the driver’s seat with a shake of his head. “No. They apparently were having lunch outside. They didn’t know what hit them. The investigation is just beginning and I’ve requested we be assigned.” He glanced into the back seat. “They’re really alright?”

Shouma’s eyes blinked open and he stared at them in confusion. “What’s going on?”

“You guys were shot during lunch,” Andy answered. “You’re safe now.”

He began breathing fast, clutching his chest as he remembered the pain. 

Tsukasa reached over, gently touching his arm. “Calm down. We’ll find out what happened.” He turned back, starting the car and heading back to the station. His cell rang and he tossed it to Andy. “Answer that will you?”

“Hello?” Andy clicked the button.

“Captain Kadoya? This is Tokyo General Hospital.”

“I’m answering for the Captain. What is going on?”

“A man by the name of Tetsuya Kanamoto was just admitted to the Intensive Care Unit. We were informed that he is one of Captain Kadoya’s detectives. Is that correct?”

“Yes, it is,” Andy’s eyes were wide. “What happened to him?”

“His car was found over an embankment off the freeway.”

“Alright. We’ll be there soon,” Andy answered before clicking the phone off. She took a deep breath, “Tet’s in the ICU at Tokyo General.”

Tsukasa let out a curse. “What the fuck is going on?”

“Seems like someone’s trying to take out most of our squad.”

Tsukasa slammed a hand into the steering wheel. “Start calling everyone. Tell them to get to the ranch. We need to watch each other’s backs.” He did a u turn, heading toward his property. “Let me know if anyone doesn’t pick up.”

Andy started calling people, updating them on the events.

They finally reached the ranch, Daiki meeting the car outside. “Any more information?”

Tsukasa shook his head. “Help get them inside. We’re headed to find out Tet’s condition.”

When they were back on the road, Tsukasa glanced at her. “Did you get ahold of everyone?”

“Yeah, they all answered.” 

“Thank god. One less thing to worry about.” Tsukasa’s knuckles were white around the steering wheel. 

They pulled into the hospital parking lot, parking and heading up to the ICU.

He pulled out his badge and identified himself. “What is Detective Kanamoto’s current condition?”

The doctor sighed. “Severe concussion, broken collarbone, internal injuries. He’s still under anesthesia from emergency surgery, so don’t expect much.” He led them to his room, opening the door and leaving them alone.

Andy entered, looking Tetsuya over. She raised her hands and started healing him. After a few minutes she sighed, “If this keeps up, it’s going to become really obvious there’s a healer on the squad... The coroner, the doctor, not to mention any past cases I’ve healed or revived people, like with the Kawata case.”

“Don’t care at the moment. I just want to know who is targeting us so I can rip him apart with my claws.” His eyes had shifted yellow as his voice went low.

Andy didn’t answer and just finished up healing Tetsuya. “He should be fine now.”

“Alright. I’ll get some uniforms to guard him unless you think we can get away with taking him?”

“I don’t think it’ll be easy to sneak out with him, plus the doctor knows you came to visit, you’d probably get in trouble. Just get some guards while we go figure out who’s doing this.”

He smirked. “Not hard with a teleporter. But you’re right.” He dialed his cell, giving orders quietly. He hung up and looked at her. “Let’s go.”

They made their way back to the car, climbing in. He pulled out, eyes scanning non stop as he drove. After ten minutes, he scowled. “We’re being followed.”

“Is there any way we can lose them?”

“Hold on.” He sped up, quickly turning in alternate directions. The van stayed with them. “Dammit! I think we need to confront them.”

Just then, the van smashed into their bumper.

Tsukasa fought the wheel as the van kept slamming into them. “I don’t think I can keep us on the road.”

Andy tried to stay steady in the car, staring back at the van as she tried to think of ideas to stop them. “Can we shoot out their tires?”

“Hold the wheel. I’ll try.” He pulled his gun from the shoulder holster and leaned out the window, firing once. He cursed as he missed. He aimed again just as the van hit their bumper just right.

They went airborne, Tsukasa slamming into the ceiling, his gun flying away. The car flipped twice, finally landing on its wheels.

The van stopped, the side door starting to open.

Andy was disoriented, trying to figure out what was happening. Her head was screaming at her as she slowly looked around. She remembered the van, and tried to spot it. She pulled out her gun, preparing to fire.

A masked figure yanked the gun from her hand as one was pointed at her head. The figure forced her door open and motioned for her to climb out. Two others were removing Tsukasa’s limp body, carrying him to the van and depositing him inside. The figure looked at Andy and held up two fingers. They waved the gun and mimed shooting her. Then they pointed at the van. “Which one?”

Andy tried to climb from the car, nearly falling over a few times as she tried to make it to the van. She finally made it and climbed in, wondering who the masked figures were.

The door slid shut, lock clicking as it went dark. A few moments later, it began to drive.

“Andy?” Her name was wheezed out in a whisper.

“I’m here,” she raised her hands which started glowing, giving a soft light in the van. She spotted him and started trying to heal him up, struggling to focus over her growing headache.

He tried to speak again, but started coughing instead. Blood sprayed onto the floor, his breath hitching. His eyes were unfocused, glazed with pain. More blood matted his hair and trickled down his cheek.

She tried to help his breathing first. She finally finished that when she felt the van start to slow. She cursed and tried to focus on the bleeding from his head, but only got it partially healed when the van came to a full stop.

The door opened and the figures roughly dragged Tsukasa out and into the building in front of them. The other figure reached in and grabbed Andy’s wrist, pulling her out. She was pushed into the building, directed to take a staircase below ground by the gun.

She emerged into a medium sized room and sat down in a chair. Quickly her hands were bound behind the back of it , her feet bound as well.

Tsukasa hung by his wrists from the ceiling. He was pale, and didn’t appear to be completely conscious. He was shirtless, dark bruising on one side of his chest.

Andy fought against the ties as she looked around trying to figure out what was going to happen.

A tall shirtless tattooed man strode into the room. He was also wearing a mask, his hands glinting in the light. His eyes briefly ran over her, then he turned to Tsukasa.

“Tsukasa Kadoya. Captain of the 115th Precinct Squad. Filled with cops that the rest of them are terrified of. Not so scary to me.” He sneered, raising Tsukasa’s chin with one hand. His other one then slammed directly into the bruising on the detective’s chest. The man laughed as Tsukasa coughed, blood spraying the floor.

“My father warned me that you and your squad could make business difficult like you did for him. But look at you, you’re helpless.” He began methodically punching the detective’s midsection. 

Andy suddenly realized what the glinting on his hands were: brass knuckles.

Tsukasa didn’t respond, his eyes struggling to stay open. He continued coughing, the blood now streaming from his lips.

The man paused, then raised his fist again. He violently slammed it into the detective’s jaw, turning away as Tsukasa went limp.

He turned to Andy with a thoughtful look. “You’re new aren’t you?”

Andy glared at him, unsure what to say.

“You’re wondering why I kidnapped you. Frankly, you were in the car. My issues are with the good Captain and his merry men. If you give me your word not to tell the police, my men will drive you home.”

Andy sighed, “Unfortunately I’m with the police.”

He gave her a frown. “That’s too bad. I don’t have a problem with you, so a ransom can be done. You won’t be harmed, I give my word.”

Andy sighed again but stayed silent, wondering how she could get them out of there.

He turned back to Tsukasa, frowning before reaching into his pocket and removing a cellphone. Dialing, he waited. Then he spoke. “Are they here yet? The merchandise took some damage. He’s still alive, but you may want to hurry.” He snapped the phone shut, then ascended the stairs and disappeared. The door locked behind him.

Andy stared at Tsukasa wishing she could heal from afar. She tried to focus her telekinesis to help her untie the ties, but not being able to see them didn’t help her so she continued struggling against it.

“Andy..” Tsukasa’s voice was pained. 

“Just rest. I’m fine and as soon as I get a chance, I’ll help you.”

He shook his head. “I’m contacting Daiki. He’ll rescue you.” The detective’s breath hitched a moment. “Get back to the others.”

“I’m not just leaving you here,” Andy argued.

He was about to answer when the door unlocked. The man descended the stairs, followed by several others. Most of the attention was focused on Tsukasa, but one man’s eyes fixed on Andy.

“Her...she’s the one who killed Kawata!”

The kidnapper slowly turned, his smile freezing. “Really? That changes things.” He moved over to her and looked down a minute before viciously punching her in the stomach.

Andy groaned, trying to curl up from the pain. She closed her eyes a moment, trying to get a deep breath in before she opened them and stared at the man angrily.

He gave her a cruel smile, then backhanded her. She and the chair crashed to the floor.

Tsukasa swore internally, closing his eyes and sending out a message to Daiki. He heard the other detective acknowledge seconds before he felt himself cut down. For a second, he thought his partner had arrived already, but that hope died as he was strapped down to a cold metal table.

Andy fought to get up struggling against the chair and the cold floor.

The tattooed man walked over to her, then kicked her into the wall.

She groaned again, pain racing through her. Her hands moved, realizing the chair had broken. She kept her hands behind her so they wouldn’t know, hoping that they’d leave soon and she could heal Tsukasa.

The other men were talking animatedly amongst themselves. A syringe and scalpel shone in the light, then disappeared, followed by a weak cry from Tsukasa. They moved away briefly, still talking. The phrase 'vivisection research’ was repeated frequently. One of the men began to unwrap a surgical case.

Andy moved quickly, throwing the men against the wall with her telekinesis. She picked up the scalpel, starting to slit their throats.

The tattooed man began to walk toward her, his eyes cold.

Andy finished taking out the men before turning toward the tattooed man. She prepared the scalpel, pointing it at him in defense.

He stopped, raising his hands. “Let’s talk. I’m sure we can come to some sort of arrangement.”

“What do you want?”

“I’ll pay you not to turn me in. I’ll pay for you to turn a blind eye. Name your price.” 

“You shot my boyfriend and friends, and hurt more of my friends. Money can’t just fix that.”

“Money fixes everything. I’ll pay their medical bills as well. Deal?”

Tsukasa made a weak sound, blood pooling on the table in front of her.

Andy moved toward the man, trying to stab at him with the scalpel.

He sneered at her. “You can’t escape my men.”

She managed to back him up into a corner, “We’ll see about that.”

He tried to wrestle the scalpel away from her.

Andy struggled to keep it away from him, getting a few small cuts in the process. She finally threw the scalpel away from them, kicking out at the man.

His head slammed into the wall and he collapsed in a heap.

Suddenly there were a set of arms wrapped around her.

She struggled against them, trying to get free.

“Andy, it’s me!” Daiki’s voice was sharp. The arms dropped as he swayed. “Sorry I’m late.”

Andy took a deep breath, trying to calm down before rushing to Tsukasa’s side and trying to start healing him.

Daiki slid himself to the floor, leaning against the wall. “Let me know when you’re ready.”

Andy struggled for the next couple hours to heal up Tsukasa’s wounds. She eventually got him stabilized. “He probably needs a transfusion for all the blood he lost, but other than that, he should be okay now.” She leaned hard against the table.

Daiki didn’t answer, his head on his chest.

She moved and knelt by him giving him a little shake, “Daiki?”

His eyes fluttered open, slowly focusing on her. “What? Are you ready?”

“I said he’s going to need a transfusion but he’ll be fine.”

The teleporter nodded, giving her a small smile as he tried to rise. “Better get him back to the ranch then.”

She helped him up, then looked back at Tsukasa.

He stumbled toward Tsukasa, placing a hand on his arm at the same time he latched on to Andy’s hand.

The world twisted rapidly for a moment, then stabilized into Tsukasa’s bedroom. The detective lay asleep on his bed.

Daiki dropped to the floor, out cold.

Andy knelt beside him to make sure he was okay. She healed up what she could then lifted him and set him into the bed next to Tsukasa. She then headed out of the room to try to find Kiba.

He was dozing on the sofa. A gauze pad was taped to his temple and she glimpsed another bandage around his wrist. Ryusei sat across the room watching him intently.

Andy went to Kiba, kneeling beside and quickly healing him before turning to sit on the floor and leaned back against the bottom of the sofa. She glanced up at Ryusei, feeling the exhaustion wash over her and the sting of the bruises as she moved.

“Glad to see you’re alive. Was beginning to lose hope.” The teen’s voice was quiet as he fiddled with something under his shirt.

“What happened?”

“You guys got taken, then all hell broke loose. We were getting attacked everywhere we went. We had to move Tet here because the hospital was infiltrated. It was a concerted attack on the squad.” He sighed. “Even the vampires got hit. They’re downstairs. Daiki wore himself out getting us here. Then Tsukasa let us know you guys were still alive.”

Andy nodded slowly, “At least now we should be safe.. I hope.” 

“Yeah, me too.” Ryusei stood shakily. “You should try to rest.” 

“Are you okay?”

“I’m far from it, but I’m not dying.” He gave her a weak smile.

Andy motioned for him to come closer, and she spent a couple minutes healing him a bit before resting her head back against Kiba.

The teen slipped from the room silently.

The next morning, there was a crash from the kitchen and a round of foreign swearing.

Andy was up and headed that way so she entered to see what was going on.

Conner was trying to sweep up several broken bowls one handed. He gave her an embarrassed look. “Sorry if I woke you.”

She shook her head. “I was up. How are you?”

He busied himself picking up the bowl shards and putting them in the trash. He didn’t answer her question, instead asking one of his own. “Tsukasa alright?”

“Yeah, he will be. He was hurt pretty badly but I healed him.”

The vampire gave her a small smile, then slowly removed several bowls. He began ladling soup into them, hissing when his left arm moved. “Figured with everyone hurt, soup would be easy to eat.”

She nodded before going over, “Need some help?”

“Yeah. If you would play delivery girl, I’d be eternally grateful.” Conner sat down at the table, trying to hide a wince as he gently set his arm on a cold pack.

Andy sighed and went over to the chair next to him, raising her hands to scan over his arm. He had burns covering it, so she spent the next twenty minutes working on it before standing to go deliver the soup. 

Daiki gave her a smile when he saw her. “You look better.”

“Still pretty sore but resting really helped.”

“Yeah, I bet. Tsukasa is finishing the transfusion. He was worried about you, so why don't you go see him?”

Andy nodded and headed to the room Tsukasa was in.

He gave her a tired grin as she entered. “I’m glad you weren’t hurt too badly. Though I may have to reprimand you for not following orders.” He slowly pushed himself to sit up.

Andy shrugged, handing him a tray with soup. “How are you feeling?”

“Tired, but much better than last night. I was positive we were both dead.”

“When I got kicked the chair broke and freed me, then I took the men out. You were pretty close to dead and I’m sure you would have been if they had the chance to continue.”

He shuddered. “Sorry you found out my biggest nightmare was real.”

“Well, at least you’re safe now.”

He nodded soberly. “What about the others? All Daiki told me was there were reasons he was late getting to us. And I want the truth.”

“Apparently there were more attacks. I’ve been working on healing them as I come across them.”

Tsukasa growled, moving the tray in preparation of getting out of bed. “I’m going to find that tattooed asshole and rip his throat out.”

“I killed him already.. I think? He hit his head pretty hard..”

The shifter sighed. “I’m going to pray you did.”

There was a knock at the door.

Andy opened it to see who was there.

Conner was crying. He reached out to Andy and hugged her tightly.

“What’s wrong?”

“My clan is gone.”

“What do you mean gone? Dead or missing?”

“The twins are missing and presumed dead. Jack and Shouma..just died.” Conner was unconsolable, his knees buckling.

Andy caught him, hugging him tightly, “Where’s Jack and Shouma?” 

“Basement. We have a shelter Tsukasa built.”

“Take me to them and I’ll see what I can do.”

Conner led her down to a large room. It was kept cool by a large ac unit near the door. Two beds were occupied, their blankets drawn up. Empty blood bags and used bandages lay scattered around. The vampire shook his head. “I can’t..” He sat down on a sofa, fighting tears again.

Andy looked them over, noticing bad burns covering the majority of their bodies. She started working on healing, creating new skin cells to replace the old ones. She worked for what felt like hours before finally moving to revive them. She focused her powers on them, giving a grateful smile when they started breathing again. 

She took a minute to rest before looking at Conner, “Where were the twins last seen?”

“The bar where we met. They were following the guys who ended up attacking us. We lost contact.”

“Okay. Don’t worry, I’m going to find them,” she headed up the stairs.

Kiba met her, his eyes flickering. “The vampires are dead?”

“Jack and Shouma are alive now, I’m about to go search for the twins.”

“Not alone you aren’t.”

“You coming with me?”

“Damn straight. Can’t be sure the attacks are over.” He grabbed her hand and headed for the garage. He climbed into an SUV and started the engine.

Andy climbed into the passenger side, resting her head back after buckling in.

He pulled out, glancing at her. “Where to?”

“The bar first. That’s where they were last seen.”

He sped there quickly, grimacing when the burnt out shell appeared. “This doesn’t look good.”

Andy sighed, “Hopefully they weren’t there when the fire happened... Maybe we can find clues though.”

Kiba shut off the engine and climbed out. “I’m going around back.” He disappeared around the corner.

Andy slowly headed into the building, avoiding debris. She glanced around, looking for anything that looked important.

“Andy! I found them! Help!” Kiba’s voice was in dragon mode, the words strained. He gave another yell.

Andy moved around to the back, looking for where Kiba was.

She caught a glimpse of a red wing.

“Get off of me, you bastard!” The words were pained.

Andy got closer and focused, throwing the attackers off Kiba before grabbing her gun out.

Kiba was breathing hard, blood streaking down between his neck and wing. He was standing between the twins and the attackers, who flashed fangs. “They’re an enemy clan.”

Andy nodded, starting to shoot at them.

Several hissed at her, but stayed back until the one who had been on Kiba charged him again. Then they lunged toward her.

Andy continued shooting, trying to fight them off. She managed to throw a couple off of her and hit a few more. 

Kiba screamed, throwing the vampire through the building. He reverted to human just as the others turned and disappeared. He fell to his knees, clutching his shoulder as his eyes glittered.

“Get the twins back to the ranch.”

“What about you?”

He shook his head. “I’ve been infected. There’s nothing to be done. I’ll just find a place to wait.”

Andy stared at him a minute, “I’m confused. Who cares if you’re infected?”

He took a shaky breath. “Vampirism is a virus. Shifters aren’t compatible. I’m dying.”

Andy took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, “Is there no way to fight it?” Andy went to him and scanned him over. 

“Are you a miracle worker? Cause that’s what I need.” His eyes rolled back and he collapsed.

Andy lifted him and the twins and put them in the car before driving toward the ranch.

Once there, she got them inside and on beds, going to the twins first and working on healing their burns. She struggled reviving them but eventually got them breathing and their heart rates steady.

Next she moved onto Kiba, watching him for a moment. She could tell he had a fever when she touched his forehead, moving his bangs from his face. She began by closing up the wound, which didn’t take much time. What did take a long time was her trying to fight off the virus.

Andy focused, trying to find the virus cells in his body. One by one she found them, destroying them. She went through his entire circulatory system multiple times to make sure she got every last piece of the virus.

Daiki walked in and froze. “What’s wrong with him?”

Andy finally stepped back, quickly sitting in a chair to rest, “Hopefully nothing now.. He was infected but I went through and destroyed the virus cells..”

Daiki forced himself to approach. “I don’t understand. What virus? When I got back, you two were gone.”

“Yoshi and Rei were missing, so we went after them. Got attacked by some vampires. I healed and revived the twins before healing Kiba and destroying the virus. His fever has even gone down so I think it’s working.”

Daiki’s eyes were huge. “You _healed_ one of the deadliest things that could happen to a shifter? It’s **never** been done. Not even in the hospital.”

“It’s just a matter of destroying the cells before they do too much damage...” Andy shrugged before grabbing Kiba’s hand.

It twitched as his eyes fluttered open. “Sorry, sweetheart.”

“I think you’re going to be fine,” Andy informed softly. 

He raised his eyebrows, but slipped back into unconsciousness before he could answer.

Andy scanned him over again, once again making sure she didn’t miss anything before taking his hand again.


	6. Chapter 6

**However far later to christmas time:**

Andy sat on the couch next to Kiba, “So what do you and Daiki usually do for Christmas?”

“Work. We usually switched shifts at our old squad for whoever wanted family time.”

Andy nodded, “Are you scheduled to work that day this year?”

“Haven’t a clue. This is our first Christmas with the 115, so don’t know what Tsukasa or the others have planned.”

Andy looked thoughtful, “Well, I normally don’t do anything on Christmas day, but Christmas eve, if you’re off, there’s a group of us who go eat at our foster mom's house. If you want to come.”

“You sure it’s okay? I don’t want to intrude.” He looked down at the couch sadly. “Daiki and I haven’t celebrated since our parents..” 

“Daiki can come too. Most of the group brings guests and there’s always plenty of leftovers,” Andy sighed. “I hated Christmas ever since..” she shook her head, “It doesn’t matter. But my foster mom always tried to make it special and got me to at least enjoy our dinner.”

He gave her a kiss. “Sounds like a special lady. Can’t wait to meet her.”

Andy smiled and cuddled up against him, “She’s nice. A lot better than my real mom.”

He chuckled. “I agree with that. Keep looking over my shoulder waiting for her to show up again.”

Andy looked down with a sigh, “She helped us last time though, so she isn’t terrible. I wonder what she’s doing now.”

He gently lifted her chin. “Let’s change the subject.”

“Sorry,” Andy gave a small smile. “Want to watch a movie?”

**Christmas Eve**

“Is Daiki coming with to dinner?”

“He politely refused. Said he didn’t want to intrude and was just going to stay home.” Kiba rolled his eyes at her. “Probably going to end up passed out drunk again.”

“Is he scheduled tomorrow? If not, do you think he’ll still show up to the office party?”

“Think he is. Tsukasa has been trying to get him out of his funk. And are you sure about an office party?”

“No one seems to have family to visit, so I thought it was a good idea..”

“I’m looking forward to it surprisingly.” He kissed her cheek. “What time do we need to leave?”

Andy glanced at the time, “We should probably get going.” She smiled before grabbing a pile of small presents.

“How are you going to introduce me? Am I your partner, your boyfriend or your bodyguard?”

Andy chuckled, “Definitely boyfriend.”

He grinned. “Did I ever tell you about the time Daiki showed up at my high school prom?”

Andy raised an eyebrow before giggling, “Sounds embarrassing.”

“He found my wallet which I had forgotten. But he figured it was too far a drive to try to catch me so he decided to fly..” 

“Seriously?”

“As a heart attack. Which is what he nearly gave my principal when he landed in the parking lot. He apologized, of course after reverting. Then he calmly went to the gym and delivered the wallet. I had no clue until the next day when the whole school was talking about the black dragon in the parking lot. I wanted to crawl into a hole.”

Andy chuckled, “Luckily none of my foster siblings did anything like that..”

“Is that why you weren’t weirded out when you found out about the squad? Because you knew about us?”

“What? Shifters?”

“Yeah. Of course, you didn’t seem too shocked at Conner and his clan either..” He gave her a suspicious look. “ _Did_ you know we existed?”

“Well I’d never seen a dragon shifter...” Andy admitted. “Hikaru and Kiko are... I guess shifters? They’re merpeople. Meiko is a white tiger. Hiroki’s got telekinesis. The rest are normal humans..”

He looked at her in shock. “There are still merpeople?”

Andy nodded, “At least those two.”

“I thought they were extinct. Come to think of it, you didn’t blink at Tsukasa’s size either. You had an interesting upbringing, didn’t you?”

Andy nodded, “But everything was fine in our little house. We didn’t have to worry about getting captured or anything. All of us were treated as equals.”

“I’m getting excited to meet them now. Maybe you should invite your siblings to the office party.”

“Maybe,” Andy nodded. 

When they arrived, Andy opened the door slowly, quickly being tackled with hugs from two younger men. She grinned before looking at Kiba, “This is Hikaru and Akasa.”

He gave them nods. “I’m Kiba. I work with your sister.”

“He does, but he’s my boyfriend,” Andy added.

Akasa held out a hand, “Nice to meet you.” Hikaru gave him a smile.

Kiba shook Akasa’s hand nervously.

Andy chuckled.

“You’re the last one to arrive,” A blonde girl walked by not looking up from her cell phone. 

“And that’s Meiko.” Andy headed further into the house toward the kitchen. “This is Hiroki and Hibiki,” She introduced a man with light brown hair first then another with dark hair. “This is my boyfriend Kiba.”

Hiroki raised an eyebrow, “You finally found someone?” 

Andy playfully hit his arm, “Shut up. You can't say anything until you find a girlfriend.”

Hiroki sighed before laughing.

In the kitchen, there was one girl with short hair, another with long, and an older woman.

“Guys, this is Kiba.”

“I’m Hana,” the one with long hair smiled.

“I’m Kiko,” the one with short hair added.

The older woman hugged Andy before going to Kiba, “I’m Marie.”

“I’m very pleased to meet you all. Are you sure I’m not intruding?”

“The more the merrier dear,” she smiled. 

Andy looked around, “Normally there’s at least a couple guests..” 

“We all managed to still be single for the holidays,” Kiko sighed.

“Yeah, Hibiki just got dumped a couple days ago,” Hana frowned.

Kiba gave Andy an impish look as he rubbed his chin.

“What?”

“Definitely invite them to the office.” He whispered.

“Are you trying to set them all up?” Andy chuckled.

“Maybe…” He tried not to laugh.

Andy smirked before moving to help with the food. Soon, they were all gathered around the table.

“So you said you work with Andy?” Hiroki asked.

“Yeah, we’re partners.” Kiba took a drink of his water.

“I feel sorry for you,” he chuckled. “She can be a bit serious when it comes to work, don’t you think?”

“Well, that’s not a bad thing. But she can have fun. Just ask our squad members about the prank war she started last month.”

“ _Andy_ started a prank war?” Akasa asked.

“You guys must have brought her out of her shell then,” Hana analyzed.

“You could say that. I think it was the other way around. And yeah she started it, though I have my suspicions that it was a bet with one of our other members.”

Andy chuckled. “You guys can meet them tomorrow if you come to our office party.”

A couple of them froze, “ _You_ are going to a party on Christmas?”

“She must really like you guys,” Hikaru gave a small smile.

“ _She_ planned it. She wanted to cheer the guys up.”

“I’m happy for you,” Marie smiled down the table at Andy who nodded.

Kiba grinned, then felt his phone vibrate. “Excuse me. I need to answer this.” He rose from the table, flipping the phone open. “What’s up?”

“I came over after your idiot brother drunk dialed me.” Tsukasa’s voice held a hint of laughter. “He said you abandoned him.”

Kiba rolled his eyes. “We invited him, he declined. Jackass. How drunk is he?”

“Snoring in my lap at the moment.”

The detective bit his lip to keep from laughing. “Take care of him, okay. You’re still coming to the party tomorrow right?”

“Of course. I know better than to risk her wrath. If I didn’t I might become a rug.”

Kiba burst out laughing, then quickly covered his mouth. “Gotta go. Enjoy your night.”

He hung up, returning to the table with a chuckle.

Andy raised an eyebrow, “Everything okay?”

“Guess who drunk dialed our boss?”

Andy smiled, “How drunk is he?”

“Ever hear a small earthquake? He’s snoring again.”

Andy chuckled and went back to the conversation she was having with Hana.

After dinner, Andy looked at Kiba, “You want to come to my place or go watch drunkie?”

“Your place. By the way, did you realize Tsukasa is afraid of you?”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Says he thinks he’ll become a rug if he incites your wrath.” Kiba couldn’t help the chuckle.

As they headed to the car, Andy smiled at him, “Thanks for coming with me.”

“Thanks for inviting me. It was fun.”

In the morning, Andy got dressed and looked at Kiba. “I have a stop to make before going to the office. I’ll meet you there, unless you want to come with?”

“I have no plans. I’ll come along.” He got dressed quickly and waited.

They walked down the road, finally stopping at a cemetery. Andy walked down the path, giving a small gasp when she noticed her mother standing near the grave she was headed to. She glanced at Kiba, “Don’t start trouble unless she does.”

“Don’t worry. You want me to stay?”

Andy took his hand and led him closer to the grave, “Surprised to see you here.”

“He was my husband after all,” her mother gave a sad smile. “Merry Christmas, Daka.” She headed away and disappeared.

Andy glanced at the headstone, and took a deep breath.

When Kiba looked, he noticed December 25 was listed as the death date.

He wrapped his arm around her silently.

“You know when I have nightmares? It’s from when he died.”

“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

“He’d taken me to the jail to visit mom, and on the walk home we were robbed... I didn’t have as much power behind my healing as I do now..”

“Oh no..Oh Andy, that’s awful.” He wrapped her in a hug, heart aching.

She wiped at her eyes, “That’s why I wanted to work with the police, to prevent things like that happening to others.”

“And your father would be very proud of you.”

She nodded sadly before giving the grave a final look. “We should probably get going.”

His cell rang as he climbed into the car. “Kaito. Whoa, calm down Shouma. Tell me what happened slowly.” He listened, his fingers clenching the phone to the point his fingers were white. After a minute, he spoke. “I’ll take care of it. Go to the office and try to enjoy yourself.” He hung up with a scowl, then started the car.

“What’s wrong?”

“Someone vandalized Shouma’s sister’s grave.”

Andy frowned, “That’s terrible.”

“Yeah. But it’s not our case, so let’s just have fun today alright?”

She nodded, “Alright. Will he be okay?”

“Yeah. He’s coming in for the party.”

“Do you really think my siblings will get along with the guys?”

“You don’t think so? I think Meiko would enjoy Ryusei, don’t you?”

Andy nodded, “That would be cute.”

“Think of it as community relations.” Kiba grinned impishly.

Andy smiled, looking out the window at the snow starting to fall.


	7. Chapter 7

“Listen up.” Tsukasa was grim. “There was a number of gang members murdered last night. We’ve been tapped to catch the top suspect before the other side retaliates and starts a war.” He refused to meet anyone’s eyes.

“What aren’t you telling us?” Andy wondered.

He didn’t reply, instead putting Ryon’s police identification up on the whiteboard. “He was photographed at the scene. His blood was also found.”

Ryusei and Kiba both exploded. “So they think he’s the killer? Are they insane?”

“Did the gang members attack him first? Self defense type of situation?” Andy suggested.

“No idea. No video of the attack. All we know for sure is, he went to their club. He’s not answering his cell phone and hasn’t been home. The Chief wants him found and questioned.” Tsukasa rubbed his forehead worriedly. “The amount of blood he left suggests he was seriously injured.”

Andy cursed, “Do _you_ think he did it?”

“Of course not. But my bosses don’t care what I think. He’s got an APB out and everyone has been given permission to shoot if he resists arrest. _We_ have to find him first.” 

Andy nodded, trying to figure out how to find Ryon. 

After they were released from the office, Andy went outside and dialed Ryon’s number, praying he’d answer.

After six rings, his tired voice said, “I didn’t do it.”

“I didn’t think you did. I’ll come alone, just give me your location.”

“490 Sukiman Road. It’s one of our safehouses.” His voice was starting to fade.

“I’ll be right there,” she hung up the phone and headed to her car.

She headed off toward the address, arriving and quickly knocking on the door, “It’s me.”

The door unlocked slowly, Ryon leaning heavily against it. He was ashen, blood drenching the entire right side of his shirt. “Anyone follow you?” 

“No.” She looked him over, “Let me heal you up.”

He allowed her in, pushing the door closed shakily. He turned to face her, his strength giving out. He slid to the floor, barely conscious.

Andy knelt beside him and started scanning him over. He had multiple bullet wounds, which she quickly started healing. When she finally was done, she lifted him off the floor and set him on the nearby couch.

“How much trouble _am_ I in?”

“None of us think you did it, but they want you taken in for questioning. It might be safer to just go easily and answer them to clear your name..” 

“I want to, believe me. But I doubt I’d survive “questioning”.” He laid his head back in frustration.

“So tell me, what actually happened?”

“I was at the club. But I didn’t kill anybody. I went to meet an informant. He was one of the gang members. We were talking, then a couple of men entered and started shooting up the place. My informant went down, I got hit and just ran.” He pulled out his phone, scrolling through it. “I got pictures of the one who ordered it.”

He handed his phone to her. “This is why I can’t turn myself in.”

Andy cursed, recognizing the captain of another squad. “So you think he planned this shooting?”

“My informant had just gotten proof of his involvement with the gang’s money laundering. Think it was a coincidence?”

Andy sighed, “You know it’s only a matter of time before our team checks the safehouses. I don’t know if they’ll take you in or not. Want to get somewhere safer?”

“You’re risking your freedom helping me, you know that? _Is_ there a safe place for me right now?” He tried to stand, but couldn’t stay upright.

“Don’t worry about me. And yeah, I have somewhere you can go.”

“Alright. I’m going to ask that you protect Ryusei, okay?” 

Andy nodded, “Come on, let’s get you out of here.” She quickly helped him to the car, then drove about twenty minutes. She led him into a small apartment. “There’s extra clothes in the bedroom closet, you can change into something less bloody. There’s also cans of food in the kitchen.”

“Thanks. Tell Cap I’m sorry about this.” He stumbled into the bedroom, stripping off his shirt before passing out on the bed.

Andy wrote a quick note and left a burner phone next to it, before heading out, taking Ryon’s phone with her. She worried it’d be traceable and wanted to keep the pictures on it for evidence. She stashed it in her car before heading back to the station. She started compiling a list of things to do and people to check out.

Kiba looked over her shoulder curiously. “Interesting to do list you got going.. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were investigating the gang murders.”

Andy sighed, “We need to prove Ryon didn’t do it.”

“You know it’s not our case. Our only assignment is to find him and bring him in.” He looked at her, realization dawning. “You did, didn’t you?”

Andy looked around a moment before whispering, “I know it’s not our case, but when the captain of another squad is involved, I’m not trusting anyone else on it.”

He stared at her in shock. “What the _fuck_ is going on? Is he okay?”

“He’ll be fine. I’ll explain everything in the car, if you’re going with me.”

“Hell yes, I’m coming.” He looked around cautiously, then headed for the door.

Andy met him at her car, “We need to check out the club.”

“Agreed.” He climbed in, waiting for her before pulling into traffic. “Now what the hell did he get himself into?”

“He was meeting with a gang member informant who just got connections between the captain and the gang, and then a few men entered and started shooting up the place, on orders from said captain.”

“Fuck.. That’s why you didn’t bring him in, right?” Kiba was trying to control his anger. “He’s afraid he won’t survive.”

Andy nodded, “He’d been at one of the safehouses, but I didn’t know if anyone on our squad would actually arrest him and I figured they’d check eventually, so I took him somewhere safer.”

“How badly was he hurt? Does he need blood?”

“Blood would probably help. I healed him up, but he’s still pretty weak. He had four bullet wounds.”

“Will he allow Conner to meet him? Since Conner isn’t _technically_ part of the squad, he won’t be watched.”

“I’ll call him in a bit after he’s rested more.”

“Alright.” Kiba parked in front of the closed club, getting out and ducking under the police tape to open the door.

Andy followed, looking around for any evidence.

A glint of metal caught Kiba’s eye. Kneeling carefully, he reached for it. Bringing his hand up, he gasped as a usb was revealed, dried blood on the plastic. “Andy..”

She approached and took a look at it, “It might have the evidence from the informant.”

“We can’t look at it at the office. I’m calling someone we can trust to open it.” He tucked the usb in his pocket and dialed his phone. When the other party answered, he held a quick conversation in a foreign language. Hanging up, he stood and motioned her toward the door. “Come on.”

Andy followed, wondering who they were meeting with.

They soon pulled up to a colorfully graffitied two story building. The first level held an arcade and tattoo parlor. Kiba took the stairs leading to the second level, stopping at a pink and purple door. He knocked, then pushed it open. “You here?”

A mop of curly hair popped up from the bank of computer monitors. “You made good time.”

Andy recognized him as Shouma, and she gave him a small smile.

He chuckled as Kiba handed the usb over. “Can you open this?”

The teen gave him a smirk, plugging it into a laptop and typing quickly. He let out a low whistle as the single folder opened, displaying its contents. “That’s one hell of a hand grenade you’ve got, K.”

Kiba read through the information with a growl. “Yeah. It blew up and almost got one of the wolves killed.”

Shouma looked at him. “ _This_ is what he was investigating? He’s lucky he’s not on a wanted poster.”

“Close enough. What’s it say?” Andy wondered.

“Our turncoat captain has made a pretty golden parachute for himself. Island accounts, there’s even evidence of suspicious deaths under his custody of rival members and journalists. This is a powder keg that will put him in jail for life at least.”

“So what do we do now? Tell Tsukasa?”

“I think that’s a good idea. Maybe you should move wolf to the ranch. I’m worried we might have tails and not know it. If the captain discovers where you stashed him..”

“It’s an apartment with no name attached, anonymous payments, and no one followed me there. I have Ryon’s phone too so it can’t be traced there. I’m afraid if we try to move him to the ranch, we’ll get caught on the way.”

“You’re probably right. I’m just worried. You said he was weak and I don’t want anyone getting an easy kill.” Kiba ran a hand through his hair, then reached for his phone.

“Tsukasa? We need to talk- not in the office. Matter of life and death.” The dragon looked at Andy, covering the mouthpiece. “You know he’s going to want to see him. What should I tell him?”

“Just tell him he’s safe for now. I’d rather get this all taken care of so he’s safe before getting him.”

Kiba nodded reluctantly, then uncovered the phone. “Let’s meet at the Raven in an hour.” He listened a moment, then hung up and turned to Shouma. “You have any B+ lying around?”

The teen nodded, heading into the kitchen and returning with two blood bags.

Kiba motioned to Andy. “Go check on him. I’ll meet Tsukasa. Meet you at the office afterwards?”

“Alright,” Andy nodded, giving him a quick kiss before heading out of the building.

She called up the burner phone, letting Ryon know she was on her way before heading out into traffic.

She kept an eye out, watching to see if anyone was following. There was a suspicious looking car, making her start heading down different roads. It continued to follow her, so she sped up trying to lose it.

It continued to tail her, speeding up and starting to ram her off the road. It got up next to her, ramming into the driver’s side, making her car start to flip. The airbag went off as it slammed into the ground the first time, then started rolling down a hill. 

She struggled to keep her eyes open, feeling pain in multiple parts of her body. Once the car settled, she heard a gunshot, the pain erupting in her side.

Andy’s hand came back covered in blood. After a few moments she grabbed her cellphone to try to call Kiba, but her eyes were unfocused. She finally heard ringing, hoping she dialed the right number.

“Andy? What’s wrong?” Kiba’s voice was worried.

“Uh...” She tried to form the words, “Car got rammed.”

“Shit. Keep talking. I’ll find you. Tsukasa just walked in. I’ll give him the usb and come get you.”

Their voices came over the line faintly, then Kiba let out a curse. There was the sound of gunshots and breaking glass, then silence.

“Kiba?!” Andy called through the phone, trying to stay conscious. After not getting a response she hung up, trying to call Daiki. 

“Kaito. Andy, is that you?”

“Kiba and Tsukasa are in trouble. At The Raven I think he said?” She said weakly.

“We just got a report of masked attackers there. Where are you?”

She was quiet for a minute as she texted him her gps data. “I’m not really sure...”

“I’m sending Tet to you. Just hold on, okay. I’m going to the Raven and I’ll find out what’s happening.” Daiki hung up quickly.

Andy stared forward at the broken windshield. She knew she’d have to get out of the car, and she was surprised when her door swung open on the first try. She moved slightly, holding her side in pain. She closed her eyes trying to fight against it.

Soon a blue camaro pulled up beside her. Tet jumped out, racing to her side. “Andy? What the hell happened to you?”

“We know who framed Ryon, so they’re trying to take us out,” she opened her eyes slowly.

“Doing a good job apparently.” He gently lifted her from the car as his phone rang. “Tet here.”

His face dropped as he listened, then he nodded slowly. “Understood. I’ve got her. We’ll meet you.” He hung up, and carried her to his car silently. He placed her inside and moved to the driver’s side.

“What’s... happening?”

“You’re going to the hospital, that’s what’s happening. Daiki is meeting us there to get your statement about this.” Tet started the car and got back on the road.

“Kiba?”

“Don’t worry about him.” Tet sent her a fleeting smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

Andy wanted to ask more but she struggled to think. 

Twenty minutes later, they pulled up at the hospital entrance. Tet carried her inside, laying her on a gurney as Daiki approached. 

Andy opened an eye weakly to look at him.

“Go ahead and pass out. I’ll see you when you wake.” He gave her a smile as she was whisked away by several nurses.

Andy woke feeling groggy from the medicine. She lifted her head slowly and opened her eyes.

Daiki put his phone down as he moved to her side. “Hey. How are you doing?”

“What happened to Kiba?” Andy asked back.

“He and Tsukasa were ambushed.” He looked away from her, examining the sunset.

“I want to see them.”

He shook his head. “No, you don’t. You told Tet you know who framed Ryon and that they were coming after us. What did you learn?”

“I’ll tell you if you promise to let me see them when we’re done.”

He grimaced, then slowly nodded. “Alright.”

“Ryon went to meet an informant. The main person behind all of this is the captain at another squad. He ordered the shooting that night and probably all this stuff today.”

“Do you have proof?”

“It was on a USB... that Kiba had,” Andy answered. “So unless he has it still or if Shouma copied it..”

“I’ll call Shouma later. Is Ryon safely hidden?”

“He’s at my safehouse..”

“Okay.” He picked her up from the bed, placing her in a wheelchair. “Are you sure you want to see them?”

She nodded slowly as she tried to fight the drowsiness from the medicine.

Daiki closed his eyes briefly, then pushed her to the elevator. He pressed the basement button as the doors closed. A few minutes later, he pushed her into the morgue. 

It was empty and Daiki quickly locked the door. He consulted the chart, then pulled out two gurneys, pulling the sheets down. His lips trembled for a moment, then he pushed her over.

Kiba lay still, his face pale. There were five holes in his chest.

Tsukasa lay next to him. He was worse, so many holes in his torso she lost count. 

“Check their pockets for the USB,” Andy ordered before looking at Kiba. She started to close the wounds as she continued to struggle to stay awake. She eventually got his wounds healed before she worked on getting his heart beating again. She gave a small smile when he finally sucked in air and his breathing steadied.

She then went to Tsukasa. One by one she closed the wounds, taking a minute to rest in between each of them. It took her what felt like hours but she finally finished, then started on his heart as well. As soon as she got him breathing, she sank into the wheelchair, resting her head on her chest as she tried to stay conscious.

Daiki frowned at her. “Are you trying to kill yourself? And there’s no usb here.”

“I’d rather try saving them even if it’s a risk,” she spoke quietly. “What do we do if Shouma doesn’t have the info?”

“I have no idea. But let’s pray Shouma copied it.” He pulled his cell and dialed. “Tet, we need clothes and a way out of the morgue without being seen. I also need you to get ahold of Shouma.” He hung up as Andy’s phone rang. He held it up. “Want to answer or should I?”

Andy took it and clicked the button, “Hello?”

“Andy?” Ryon’s voice was panicked. “They found me..” There was the sound of breaking glass as he growled.

“There’s a secret room down in the basement, if you can sneak down there and get to it.”

“You don’t sound good. Are you okay?”

“Get yourself to the safe room, we’ll be there as soon as we can. Stay on the phone until I know you’re there.”

There was the sound of him running, then a muffled groan. Silence for a minute, then the sound of a door being locked. “I’m in. Safe for now.”

“Good. Keep texting me so I know you’re still safe,” she hung up then looked at Daiki, “ _How_ do they find an apartment with no name listed, that I’ve only been to twice?”

“He’s a cop. He has ways to find things.” Daiki sighed in relief as Tet knocked on the window.

He unlocked the door, opening it. “We need to get them out of here. We need to go rescue Ryon.” He helped get Kiba wrapped in a blanket, Tet heading out the ambulance entrance with him. He worked on getting Tsukasa ready, then looked at Andy.

“We’ll save him, then we’re going to the ranch so we can figure this out.”

Andy struggled to push herself out of the wheelchair, finally standing unsteadily.

“Save your strength.” Tet returned, picking Tsukasa up as Daiki picked her up and followed him out. Daiki placed her in the back of the SUV next to Kiba as Tsukasa was belted in.

“I need that address.” Tet waited for her to answer.

“647 Cherry st.”

Tet closed the door, climbing into the driver’s seat and inputting the address to the gps. Daiki climbed in, buckling his belt as Tet started the car.

Thirty minutes later, the apartment came into view. Several windows were broken but there were no vehicles in sight. Tet slowed, eyes scanning the surroundings.

“Have you heard from him since you hung up?” Daiki’s words were worried.

Andy glanced at her phone, “A couple times. But he hasn’t texted in a few minutes..”

“I’ll go.” Tet climbed out.

“It’s a hidden room downstairs to the right.”

He entered slowly, disappearing from sight. After ten minutes, he returned. His hands were bloodstained and he was shaking. He gave a small shake of his head as he slumped into the seat.

“Is he not there or is he dead?” Andy asked softly.

“They broke down the door.. He’s dead.”

Andy struggled to get out of the car, making her way toward the apartment.

Tet ran after her. “You don’t want to see this..” He tried to keep her from entering, his voice anguished.

She stopped and looked up at him, “I don’t want to see it, but if there’s any chance I can heal and revive him, I _need_ to see it.”

Tet stepped away, following her down.

She froze, taking in the sight. Ryon was in wolf form, hanging to the wall with knives, multiple wounds littering his body. 

She focused for a minute before removing the knives. She caught him with her telekinesis and moved him gently to the ground. Kneeling beside him, she looked up at Tetsuya, “He’ll definitely need a transfusion. Can we take him to the ranch and I’ll heal him there?”

Tet nodded wordlessly. He went upstairs, returning with a quilt, in which he wrapped his friend. He gently brushed a hand over the wolf’s head. “Don’t leave us. We’re here.” He looked at Andy before beginning to carry the body up.

Andy followed slowly behind, giving a final look at the apartment before heading to the car. 

Tet carefully laid Ryon in the trunk area of the SUV, then helped Andy in. As she got settled, he climbed into the driver’s side and started the car. He headed toward the ranch, then looked at Daiki. “Send the text.”

Daiki took a deep breath, then pulled his phone out. He accessed his texts, choosing a saved one and hit send. “Done. Probably be an hour or so.”

Andy wondered what that was about but decided not to ask. She leaned against Kiba, wincing as the medicine started wearing off. “Did we get in contact with Shouma?”

Daiki chuckled. “Turns out he copies _everything_. Compulsive habit, he says. We have the info safe. He’ll bring it with him.”

Andy nodded slowly, closing her eyes and resting her head against Kiba. She heard his heartbeat, listening to it for a few minutes and glad it was back and steady. 

An hour later, the gate to the ranch loomed out of the darkness. Tet got out, unlocking and pulling it out of the way. He got back in, driving toward the house. He parked outside, then turned off the security system and opened the front door.

“Get them into beds while I get the blood.” Tet disappeared down a side hall.

Andy helped get them unbuckled before lifting Tsukasa and Kiba with her telekinesis. She entered the house, laying them on beds before looking back at Daiki who had Ryon. Once he was on a bed, she pulled up a chair and started trying to close up his wounds.

“I’m going to kill them slowly.” Daiki’s voice was icy, his eyes flickering dangerously.

“As long as I can help,” Andy answered.

Tet entered the room, several blood bags in his arms. He quickly set up transfusions for the three, jaw twitching as he watched Ryon.

Andy spent the next five hours working to heal and revive Ryon. When she was done, she stood shakily for a moment before collapsing to the ground.

“Shit!” Daiki quickly knelt, lifting her into a bed. He sighed, giving her an injection of pain medication after checking her stitches. He dimmed the lights, leaving the door ajar as he left the room.

“I don’t give a flying fuck about the job!” Daiki’s voice was loud.

Andy woke, wondering why there was yelling. She moved slowly into a sitting position.

“Tsukasa will kick your ass if you fuck things up with the department.” Conner’s voice was tense.

“If you haven’t noticed, Tsukasa got _killed. He was filled full of fucking holes by another squad of the department!”_ Daiki’s voice got louder, his words fueled by an undercurrent of unstable rage.

Andy pushed herself off the bed, slightly stumbling as she walked to the door. She spoke quietly, “Why are you yelling?”

Conner gave her a relieved smile. “Glad to see you awake. Tet and Jack have suggested going to the Chief, so we don’t do anything that gets us fired or arrested. Daiki thinks its a waste of time.”

The rest of the squad was scattered around the room, Daiki near the basement stairs. He was shaking, trying not to shift. His eyes were completely black.

“We have to go to someone higher, and right now the Chief is probably the best bet,” Andy sighed, leaning against the wall.

“Who’s to say he’ll side with us over the normals?”

Andy sighed, “All we can do is hope. If we go after the other squad by ourselves, it won’t end well, if that’s not already obvious.”

Daiki took a deep breath. “Fine. Whatever.” His eyes slowly returned to normal seconds before he collapsed to the floor.

Tet growled, quickly crossing to him. He sighed as he saw the bandage taped to his friend’s side. “Why didn’t anyone say he was injured? And he tried to shift?”

Ryusei’s eyes were big. “We didn’t know. Is he okay?”

Tet exhaled sharply. “I don’t know.” He looked at Andy. “Shifting when we’re injured can put too much strain on us. I don’t know how bad he’s hurt.”

Andy went over to Daiki’s side, checking him over before starting to heal him. After twenty minutes, Andy pushed herself up, “He should be okay.”

Tet rose, looking at Shouma. “Send a copy of the usb to the Chief. Tell him we’re laying low, but if they come after us we will defend ourselves.”

Shouma nodded, heading for the basement.

Tet looked at her. “Are you the only one awake?”

“I think so, why?”

“Just worried. If we have to protect them, it’ll be harder to defend.”

Andy nodded, “I’m not in the best shape right now, but I’ll do my best if it comes to it.”

Shouma reappeared. “Done. Now we just wait for a response.”

“Hopefully we get one quick.”

Daiki groaned, covering his eyes. “What did I do?”

Andy chuckled, “You were arguing, kind of shifting, then passed out.”

“Shit.” He sat up slowly. “Sorry. Kiba awake yet?”

“Not yet.”

Tet gave a look to the others and they moved into the kitchen.

Daiki stared into his lap. “All I could see was Tsukasa’s body in my head. Why did they do that to him?” He looked up at her, anguish in his eyes.

“It’s okay now. He’s going to be fine,” Andy sighed. “They’re just bad people, there’s no real reason.”

He nodded, taking a breath and holding it before exhaling. “Do you think we’ll have to fight them?”

“I don’t know,” Andy admitted, “But if we do, we’ll take them down.”

“I think I need to apologize to you and Kiba. This is not what I intended when I got him a spot here.”

“At least he knew the squad was gifteds. I thought I had a normal job on a normal squad,” Andy chuckled softly.

“That’s what I need to apologize about. I told Tsukasa not to tell you, then encouraged him to partner you with Kiba.” He gave her an embarrassed smile. “Forgive me?”

“It’s fine, I mean, this way I got close to Kiba and that’s going well at least,” she gave a soft smile before giving a curious look, “How did I get picked for a gifteds squad? Did you guys know I could heal?”

Daiki shook his head. “No idea. I thought we needed a girl. And you had a good arrest record.”

Andy nodded, “So utter coincidence.”

“Yeah. But a happy one.”

Daiki turned as Kiba spoke. “Thank god. I was getting worried.”

Kiba leaned on the doorjamb, rubbing his eyes. “What the hell happened anyway?”

“You and Tsukasa were ambushed and my safehouse got broken into and Ryon was killed. You three took a lot of work to heal,” Andy went to him and hugged him gently, wincing slightly as it pulled on her stitches.

He hugged her back slowly, then tensed. “We were on the phone.. You were hurt!” He looked her over worriedly. “Are you okay?”

“Well my car flipped multiple times and I was shot. But I’m alive.”

He kept his arms around her. “What’s our status?”

Daiki sighed. “We sent a copy of the info to the Chief. Waiting for a response, also waiting on you three to wake up.”

Ryusei entered the room, eyes stormy as he began to pace. He kept glancing at the bedroom where Ryon lay.

“He’s going to be okay,” Andy tried to comfort. “I’m sorry the safehouse wasn’t as safe as I thought.”

“Not your fault. I’m just scared.”

Daiki grimaced. “Yeah. If they get their hands on us..” He looked at Andy. “We’ve been keeping something from you..”

“What?”

“This squad..how do I put this?”

Ryusei rolled his eyes. “The squad after us hate gifteds. Like, they get their kicks torturing us.”

Andy nodded, “Not too surprising.”

“There’s been rumors that they’re part of a vigilante group that ‘cleans’ neighborhoods. Never found any evidence though.”

Shouma popped his head in. “Chief just texted me. Said to do what’s necessary to stay alive.”

Andy nodded, “So he’s with us? Hopefully this all blows over soon...”

The lights went out.

Daiki swore. “When the generator kicks in, open the armory. Andy, protect Tsukasa and Ryon.”

A few minutes later, dim lighting returned and Kiba headed for the basement as the others entered in confusion.

Daiki started giving orders. “Kiba’s opening the armory. Grab whatever you’re comfortable with, then spread out and kick their asses.”

The squad headed for the basement, reappearing with a variety of weapons.

“When you run out of ammo, shift. This ends tonight.” Daiki looked at them. “Not one of them gets in here as long as we’re able to fight.”

Andy prepared her pistol, glancing out the window a moment before looking down at Ryon and Tsukasa. She’d do anything to protect them, she vowed silently to herself, then stood guard at the door of the room.

The squad moved out silently, the house going silent.

For a long time, there was no noise. Then explosions made the ground shake. Flames could be seen from the windows and the sound of firing weapons broke the stillness.

There was no way of telling how long the fighting continued. Suddenly Kiba and Conner came racing into the house. They stood in front of Andy, both breathing heavy. “Get in there and lock the door.” Kiba’s voice was grim.

“And just leave you two out here?”

“GO!” Conner yelled, his face changing as Kiba shifted.

Andy cursed, heading in and locking the door. She stood behind it, trying to block it in case someone tried to kick it in.

There were sounds of fighting, muffled cries, then one awful scream. Silence fell, then the door was forced open.

Andy shot at the attackers, standing between them and the two shifters.

Two went down, but the last charged her, knocking the pistol away. He had a wavy dagger in his hand, stained with blood. The dagger flashed in the dim light before sinking into Andy’s chest.

She screamed in pain, trying to stay conscious to keep him from the other two but the pain was too much, and she sunk to the ground limply.

The man laughed, slowly pulling it out. He was about to plunge it into her again when he flew forward into the window, a bullet in his back. He hung on the broken frame as Kiba and Conner crawled into the room.

Kiba screamed Andy’s name, cradling her in his arms. He flashed back to another night and began sobbing. “Conner, save her! Please…”

The vampire swallowed hard. “Kiba..”

“Do it! I’ll take responsibility.” He brushed her hair from her paling face as the vampire sighed and nodded.

Conner picked up the dagger, quickly slashing his wrist. He let the blood run into the wound, then forced Andy to swallow several gulps of the dark liquid. “We’ll have to wait, see the virus takes hold.”

Kiba nodded absently. He kept looking at Andy’s face, even when it doubled, then tripled. He finally toppled over on top of her, lying still.

The vampire gently moved him, head bowing when he felt silence under his fingers. He carefully picked Andy up, placing her in a bed as the squad survivors began to stagger in.

Hours passed. Injuries were patched, the fighters falling asleep wherever they lay.

Andy jolted up quickly, looking around confused.

Conner watched her for a minute. “How do you feel?”

She took a moment, “Sore. Kind of weird.”

He nodded. “It will pass.”

She looked around the room, “Who did we lose?” She pushed herself up, “I can start healing them.”

“You should take it easy.” Conner gently admonished.

She shook her head, “I need to help.”

“Alright.” Conner led her to another room where Shouma was holding Tet’s hand. He was barely breathing, a large bullet hole in his right side under his ribs.

Andy went over to him, raising her hands to start healing him. Within minutes the hole was closed, “He probably needs a transfusion.”

Shouma and Conner exchanged glances. Conner nodded, motioning her to follow. He walked to another room, hesitating before the door. “You sure?”

She nodded, “I want to help them.”

Conner sighed, opening it to reveal Daiki and Kiba.

Daiki had so many slash marks, he was almost shredded.

Kiba didn’t have as many as his brother, but he was similar.

Conner touched her shoulder gently. “He died begging me to save you.”

Andy looked confused for a moment before her eyes went wide with realization at what saving her meant. She took a deep breath and shook her head before starting to heal him. The wounds closed easily, and soon he was breathing again. She went to Daiki, and though it took a bit longer, she healed him faster than she normally would have. She sighed, “They should be fine now.”

The twins entered, whispering into Conner’s ear. He let out a strangled sob, then quickly composed himself. He shakily whispered back, closing his eyes as they left.

“What’s wrong?”

“Kenji and Ryusei were missing. Jack and the twins just found them.” Conner couldn’t help the tears from streaking his cheeks. “I wish we’d captured some of those bastards alive…”

She went to him and wrapped her arms around him, “Where are they? I’ll see what I can do..”

Conner held on to her for a moment, then headed out a side door. They walked to a far part of the property.

Jack stood guard, his eyes averted.

Kenji slumped against a metal pole, zip ties holding him up. His clothes were charred, dreadful burns visible everywhere. The pole had become so hot, it had burned through his clothing and into the muscle. His face was unmarked, unnaturally peaceful looking.

Andy gasped as she scanned him over. “Do you guys have a knife to cut him down?”

Jack nodded, making quick work of the task and laying him gently to the ground. He stepped away, his jaw twitching.

Andy worked on healing him, starting with the muscle then the skin. In half an hour, he was breathing, heart beating again.

“Where’s Ryusei?”

Again, Conner led her wordlessly. About 200 feet away, the twins worked to free the shifter. He’d been strung up in barbed wire, his killers wrapping it around his neck and chest. It was obvious it hadn’t been quick, as the teen’s face was a mask of terror, his grey eyes glazed and staring. Blood was everywhere.

The shifter was finally cut free, the twins gently cradling him as he came down. They brought him toward Andy, placing him on a blanket. Yoshi closed the grey eyes, his hand trembling.

Andy already had tears in her eyes from Kenji, how bad of shape he was in, but when she saw Ryusei, she started sobbing. She had no idea how anyone could live with themselves after treating anyone so badly, but especially someone so kind and gentle. She knelt beside him, struggling to focus with her crying. She forced herself to take a few deep breaths, wiping at her eyes. She couldn’t imagine the fear he’d gone through, and she prayed he’d never have to deal with anything like that ever again. She finally calmed herself enough to start the healing process, quickly closing up all the wounds and working to revive him. She stood shakily, still fighting tears. “He definitely needs a transfusion, but he should be okay.”

The twins quickly picked him up, heading for the house as Jack did the same with Kenji.

Conner gave her a hug. “Are you okay?”

“How can people do that to someone else?” She whispered.

“I don’t know. And they call _us_ monsters.” Conner’s voice was angry. “Let’s get back to the house.”

She nodded slowly and followed him.

Several squad members were standing outside when they got there. Jack was trying to calm Shouma while Yoshi tried to calm both his twin and Ryon.

Andy gave them small smiles, trying to help them stay positive. 

They didn’t acknowledge, Rei muttering something about flaying a squad captain alive under his breath.

Jack shook his head. “Don’t go in there. It might get ugly.”

Andy raised an eyebrow.

“The Chief came down. Internal Affairs is trying to get permission to arrest Tsukasa for the battle last night.”

Rei snarled, his fangs flashing. “Calling _us_ dangerous monsters who slaughtered another squad.”

Conner swore, his fists clenching.

Andy sighed, leaning against the building, looking down at the ground. She prayed things would work out and none of the squad would get arrested.

Rei pushed past Jack, storming into the house.

Andy looked up, “Should we go in and stop him?”

Conner nodded, heading inside.

Rei was yelling. “Your precious squad _burned_ my friend to death! I just spent ten minutes cutting down our _nineteen_ year old teammate after the bastards wrapped him in barbed wire and strangled him with it! But you give it a pass cause we’re just _monsters_ , right?”

“It’s not like that,” The Chief responded.

“You might want to get rid of the attitude unless you want to be arrested too. Maybe we should arrest the lot of you,” the lady from Internal Affairs spoke angrily. “There’s multiple deaths on their squad, yet I’m not seeing anyone dead here like you claim. It seems obvious you attacked them.”

Andy growled, “Attacked them? On property that belongs to one of us?! And the reason our squad doesn’t have anyone dead is I’m a healer.”

“Right, like we’re supposed to believe you can raise the dead?”

“Believe it.”

“Let’s take a minute to calm down,” the Chief tried to keep the peace.

Conner stayed silent, leaning heavily on the wall. Suddenly, his eyes closed and he slid down to the floor. Rei rushed to his side, reaching out to check his neck pulse. He drew back in shock, his hand bloodstained. “Andy, he’s not breathing..”

Andy cursed, going and kneeling beside him. Her hands glowed as she worked on healing his injuries. She then worked on getting him breathing again, steadying his heart rate. “Get him into a bed,” she looked at Rei after moving away from him.

The lady from Internal Affairs watched in shock.

“I think we’re done here,” the Chief concluded.

The lady sighed, lowering her head before nodding.

Tsukasa bowed his head to the Chief and turned away. 

Andy took a deep breath and waited for them to leave, “I’m going to sit with Kiba. Let me know if anyone else needs help.” She headed to the room he was in, sitting beside him and holding his hand.

He stirred, eyes slowly blinking open. When they focused on her, he began to cry. “It worked…”

Andy kissed his hand, “I guess it did.”

He tensed. “You’re angry, aren’t you? I’m sorry.. I couldn’t let you die..”

She shook her head, “Not really angry. Not really sure how I feel about it yet.”

He nodded slowly. “Don’t blame Conner, okay? I begged him to. If you can’t accept it, I understand if you want to end things with me.”

“Kiba, I love you, okay? That’s not going to change.”

He nodded, looking unconvinced. “What happened after we fought? Is everyone alive?”

She took a deep breath, “Everyone’s alive, I had to revive a few. The Chief came, I think we’re not in trouble.”

He slowly pushed himself up. “I want to explain why.. Just let me talk, okay?”

She nodded silently.

“Remember when Kawata talked about killing my partner? Her name was Tomoko. She was five years older than Shouma. We were the three musketeers. We all shared an apartment. When I started investigating Kawata’s ties to the department, she helped me. One night I was on night stakeout.. Kawata broke in. He forced her to call me. When I got home, he had stabbed Shouma almost to death and he was ‘playing’ with her. I attacked him and he stabbed me in the stomach repeatedly. He killed her slowly. The first one to arrive was Conner. I begged him to save her and Shouma. It worked on him, but she was gone.”

He wiped his eyes. “Last night, I freaked. It was Tomoko all over again. That’s why I begged him..”

Andy nodded, “I’m sorry you had to go through all that. It must have been really rough.”

“Shouma was angry for a long time, but he finally dealt with it. I can handle you being angry, as long as you’re alive.”

Andy sighed, “I don’t think I’m angry.”

He swallowed hard. “Okay..”

She took a deep breath, “I just feel weird and confused. Not at why you did it, just in general. Like what is going to change now because of this? You know?”

“Nothing has to change. You’re not dead. Conner will help you.” Kiba bent over and kissed her gently.

She kissed him back, giving him a small smile as they parted. It turned into a smirk, “So you don’t mind dating a vampire?”

He chuckled. “If you don’t mind being with a shifter.”

She kissed him again, “I love you.”

“Love you too.”


	8. Chapter 8

“Andy, can you come look at Ryusei?” Shouma’s voice was worried over the phone.

“Yeah, I’ll be right there.”

Shouma let her in, leading her to a back room. 

Ryusei lay unconscious, his body trembling uncontrollably. He was sweating heavily, his face flushed. His breathing was rapid, almost hyperventilating.

“What happened to him?” Andy looked at him worriedly, starting to scan him over.

“We were at a party. There were these vials being handed out to everyone. He only drank a little, then started acting really drunk. A few of my _other_ friends felt sick after trying it. I decided to bring him here, then he collapsed and has been like this ever since.”

Andy shook her head, “Do you have any idea what was in the vials?” She focused on trying to control Ryusei’s temperature.

The vampire pulled a full one from his hoodie. “I didn’t touch it.”

Andy took the vial, “Okay, final question, did you see who was passing them out?”

“Never seen them there before, but they were vampires. They didn’t hang around.” He glanced at the shifter nervously.

Andy frowned as she continued to steady the shifter’s vitals, “I’ll go start testing this in the lab. I’ll see if I can figure out what it is.”

“What about him? Should I take him to the hospital or something?”

“I’m hoping once the drug wears off he’ll start feeling better. He’s doing better for now, keep an ice pack on his head to help keep the fever away and call me if he gets worse again. Hopefully it won’t take too long to test this.”

He took a deep breath, then nodded.

Weird violin music began playing from Andy’s pocket. ‘Vampire Club’ started as Shouma started laughing. “Let me guess, Kiba got ahold of your phone?”

Andy rolled her eyes and answered, “What’s up?”

“Have you seen Shouma?” Kiba’s voice was tense.

“I’m with him now, why?”

“Thank god. I’m at a crime scene.” Kiba relaxed slightly. “Was afraid he’d be next.”

“What’s happening?”

“Vampires are dropping dead all over town, cause unknown. Tell him to be careful.”

Andy paused a moment before looking at Shouma, “All your friends that got sick, were they vampires?”

His eyes went wide and he nodded slowly.

“I think I know the cause,” Andy answered Kiba.

“Not sure I like that. Where are you?”

“Shouma’s. Ryusei’s sick but if this thing is only killing Vampires, I’m hoping he’ll be fine.”

“Stay there. I’ll be over.” Kiba hung up abruptly.

Twenty minutes later, he was at the door. Shouma opened it quickly.

“Where’s Ryu?” Kiba’s face was stony.

“Back here,” Andy called.

He followed her voice, eyes darkening as he saw his condition. He knelt as the teen suddenly shifted. He gently touched the wolf, gritting his teeth as Ryusei let out a whimper. Kiba looked up at Andy. “What is happening? Why are vampires dropping dead and shifters getting sick?”

Andy held up the vial, “Some vampires handed out this drug at at least one party, if not more. It’s what made Ryusei sick, and Shouma said his other friends started getting sick too. It wouldn’t surprise me if it was a way to wipe out rival clans.”

“Bastards. Any idea how to cure this?” He watched the wolf begin to twitch slowly.

“I’m hoping it’ll work its way out of his system, but if it doesn’t we might be able to formulate an antidote.”

His cell started ringing. He answered, scowling as he listened. After several minutes, he spoke gently. “Rei, calm down. We’ll find them, I swear. Just stay with Jack, alright?” After another minute, Kiba hung up with a sigh. “Can this day get _any_ worse?”

“What’s wrong now?”

“Conner, Yoshi and Kenji never came home last night from the Raven. Rei heard about the deaths and is freaking out.” Kiba laid a hand gently on Ryusei’s fur. “Should we move him to the ranch?”

“If you think he’ll be better there, then we can take him. We should go look for them.”

Kiba frowned. “Shouma, keep taking care of him. If he gets worse, call Tet.” He stood, then looked at Andy. “I’ve got a bad feeling and I can’t shake it. We need to hurry.”

She nodded, “Let’s go then.”

Conner grimaced as he struggled against the chains confining him to the table. His head was pounding, his eyesight blurry as he tried to study his surroundings.

Another table was rolled in, stopping beside him.

His eyes went wide as he saw an unconscious and feverish Kenji. He struggled harder as yet another table rolled in and stopped. 

Yoshi was also unconscious, but looked normal.

Conner’s forehead furrowed as he tried to figure out what was happening. He jumped as he felt a pinch in his arm.

The hand disappeared into the darkness silently. A door closed and they were left alone.

  
  


Kiba answered his phone again, letting out a ‘yes!’ under his breath as he listened. Hanging up, he looked at Andy. “We found them. Ready to rescue them?”

She nodded, “Where are they?”

“Abandoned warehouse by the docks. Tsukasa is waiting for us.” He drove quickly, taking a deep breath as they arrived.

Tsukasa waved them down. “No heat signatures aside from our three wayward vamps. But stay sharp.”

Kiba nodded, turning off the car and reaching for his vest.

Andy got out, keeping her eyes sharp for any enemies.

Tsukasa spoke to a tall blond man in SWAT fatigues, then pulled open the door and disappeared. 

Kiba jogged over, then slowly crept in behind.

Andy entered slowly, unsure what to expect.

“ANDY! Get over here!” Tsukasa’s voice was panicked.

Andy followed the sound of the voice, finally spotting the vampires. 

Conner was convulsing, blood gushing from his lips. Tsukasa was trying unsuccessfully to keep the vampire still, his eyes horrified.

Kiba stood still in shock next to Kenji. The vampire was covered in blood and not breathing.

Andy rushed forward to Conner, trying to start healing him. She analyzed what was happening inside him, “It seems the drug is trying to kill the virus..” She focused on getting the bleeding to stop and finally calming his body down.

“Why isn’t it acting the same on him?” Tsukasa glanced at Yoshi.

Andy took a moment to scan Yoshi over before asking, “How long have they all been vampires? It could be a matter of age?”

“The twins are only about three years old. Conner is over two hundred, Kenji is a little over one hundred.” Tsukasa grimaced.

“Maybe this only works on newer vampires then?” Andy went back to Conner and tried to continue to heal the effects of the medicine. 

“Okay, we know what’s happening. We have to find who’s doing this and stop them.” Tsukasa took a deep breath, then glanced at Andy. “Get them out of here. Do your best to save them. I’m going hunting.” He headed for the door grimly.

Andy looked at Kiba, “Are you going with him?”

“I probably should keep him from being too rash.” He gave her a kiss hurriedly, then followed.

Andy got the three out and into a car, then headed to her house which was closest. She got them set up on guest beds, then continued to work on Conner. After a while, she went and cleaned up Kenji before working to revive him. She hoped the drug would quit fighting his body now that it’d already killed him once. She got him breathing before checking on Yoshi again.

Yoshi blinked his eyes open sleepily. “What’s happening? I feel weird..”

“I think the drug you were given is trying to turn you human again,” Andy sighed. “Other than that, don’t worry, you’re safe at my house.”

Yoshi’s eyes grew terrified. “No.. make it stop.. Andy, make it stop! I can’t…”

“Okay, okay, calm down. I’ll see what I can do, just take a deep breath.”

He followed her instructions, slowly regaining his composure. “Sorry.”

“Do you not want to be human again?”

“I’ll be dead within three months if that happens.”

“Why?” Andy raised an eyebrow.

“Inoperable brain tumor. The virus keeps it from growing.”

“Is that why you were turned in the first place?”

“Yeah. Rei asked Conner to do it after we exhausted all other options.”

Andy nodded, “Alright, other than feeling weird, how are you? Would you be up to watching them so I could go to the lab and see about making an antidote?”

He nodded. “I can do that.” He slowly sat up, glancing at the other beds. “They really look sick.”

“That’s another reason I want to make an antidote, see if it’ll help them.”

“Something else happened, didn’t it? Someone else is sick?”

“Ryusei is sick too.”

Yoshi looked at her sharply. “He’s not one of us. It’s attacking shifters too?”

“The drug was passed out at a party. I guess it made him drunk and then sick. I don’t _think_ it’s as dangerous to him though, but..”

Her phone began to ring.

Andy pulled it out and answered, “Andy here.”

Shouma’s voice was frantic. “ANDY! There’s so much blood… Help please..”

Andy took a deep breath, “Just calm down. I’ll be there as soon as I can.” She hung up and looked at Yoshi, “Call me if they get worse.” She rushed from the room, stopping at the lab running a few quick tests on the drug while making an antidote, then she headed to Shouma’s. She entered, “What happened?”

Shouma was cradling Ryusei’s head, shakily brushing his fingers through the dark fur. “He sharted shaking, then blood just gushed out. He’s barely breathing..”

Blood coated the front of the wolf, puddling on the floor. His grey eyes were glazed with pain, his muzzle hanging open as he panted slowly.

Andy injected him with the antidote before working on trying to heal up the damage the drug caused. “Shouma, can you set up a transfusion for him?”

The vampire nodded, gently laying the wolf down and heading for the kitchen. After a few minutes, he reappeared, setting up the supplies. He finished, then resettled himself cradling the wolf again.

Andy worked a bit longer before standing, “He’s healed, the antidote is trying to work it’s way through him, so once that works, he should be okay.”

Shouma nodded, then asked “Did you find them?”

“Yeah, I need to get back. Call me if anything changes.”

The vampire nodded.

Andy headed home, quickly injecting the three men with the antidote before scanning over Conner and Kenji. She glanced at Yoshi, “How are you feeling?”

“Better. Was starting to feel like I did when I stopped chemo.” Yoshi watched the others worriedly. “Is it going to work?”

“I hope so.” 

Andy’s cell rang once again.

She picked it up, “What’s up?”

“Detective Takimoto?”

“Yes, who is this?”

“SWAT commander Ankh Hino. How long will it take you to get to Tokyo General?”

“Just a few minutes, why?”

“Kadoya and Kaito are in the ICU. Not expected to survive.”

Andy took a deep breath, trying to stay calm, “I’ll be right there.” She looked at Yoshi again, “I have to go..”

He nodded.

Ten minutes later, Andy was entering the ICU.

The tall blond she’d seen at the warehouse met her grimly. “I wish we were meeting under better circumstances. Kiba talks about you non stop.”

Andy gave a small smile, before sighing, “What happened to them?”

“We found the suckers responsible for this drug. They were ambushed and injected with a large amount. They’re on life support and transfusions, but the doctors say it’s just a matter of hours at most.”

“I’ve created an antidote which should help them,” Andy pulled a vial from her pocket. 

A doctor exited the ICU, shaking his head. He made his way over, staring at her quizzically. “Detective Takimoto, I presume?”

“Yes,” Andy nodded.

“Detective Kaito has you listed as next of kin. You need to make a decision about whether he remains on artificial support or is removed.”

Andy raised an eyebrow, “Me? I figured his brother would be listed.” She sighed, “Give me a few minutes with both him and Kadoya please.”

He slowly nodded, moving toward the nurses station silently.

Andy headed into Kiba’s room, quickly giving him the injection. She tried to heal up some of the damage before heading into Tsukasa’s room to do the same.

Tsukasa began fighting the ventilator, his heart rate rising quickly.

Andy cursed, “Calm down,” she spoke quietly, before calling the doctor into the room.

He took one look, rushing to remove the tube. The doctor stared dumbfounded as Tsukasa’s eyes shot open and he tried to speak. 

“Hey,” Andy gave him a smile.

His voice was rough and shaky. “Ki-Kiba.. Help..”

“Don’t worry,” Andy said gently, “He should be okay soon.”

He nodded slowly as his eyes closed.

Alarms rang insistently from Kiba’s room.

Andy rushed over there to see what was happening.

He was trying to pull the respirator tube out, his eyes wild and unfocused. Several nurses were trying to grab his hands.

“Kiba, calm down,” Andy spoke calmly but loud enough he could hear.

He stilled, his eyes locking on her. He began trembling, his eyes filling with tears.

When there was room, she went to his side and held his hand, “Everything’s okay, just calm down.”

“This..was a test.. They wanted to target you.. Get you off the squad..” He squeezed her hand tightly.

Andy looked at him confused for a moment, “I don’t understand. Who was trying to get me off the squad?”

“A group of vampires who want to kill us. They’re furious you keep healing us.” He gave a weak chuckle.

Andy nodded slowly. “How do we find them?”

He shook his head. “No idea. The ones spreading the drug are dead. We may just have to wait for them to do something.”

She sighed, “Alright, I guess we’ll just have to keep our eyes open.” She looked out the window a moment before turning back, “Why am I listed as your next of kin and not Daiki?”

“We’re together right? So why shouldn’t you be? Daiki is Tsukasa’s.”

Andy gave him a smile and kissed his hand, “Makes sense, was just a bit surprised to hear it.”

He smiled tiredly at her. “I want out of here.”

“Then let’s get you checked out and we can go to my place. The others are still there and I should check on them again anyway.”

He nodded, attempting to remove his iv.

Andy sighed, “Let the nurses do it.”

He pouted. “Gonna take forever.”

Andy rolled her eyes before removing the IV for him. “Happy now?”

He grinned cheekily at her as the doctor entered. 

“Detective, I’d like to run some tests, so I’m not releasing you just yet.”

Kiba growled low in his throat.

The doctor looked startled, then turned to Andy. “Would you speak to him?”

Andy sighed and looked at Kiba, “They just want to make sure everything is fine. It’ll be probably be easier for you to just do the tests than to fight it.”

“You can’t be unguarded..” He looked at her worriedly. 

“Don’t worry about me, just focus on you being the healthiest you can be, okay?” She tried to calm him gently.

“If something happens…” He looked at the doctor and shook his head. “Sorry doc. I’m leaving now.” He began to throw the sheets aside, then stared as a wolf tail was revealed. “What the hell?!”

Andy looked at him a moment and shrugged, “Is it possible to shift into multiple things?”

“If your parents had the simple shifter gene, like your friend Meiko. It shouldn’t be possible for me..”

“It’s okay, we’ll figure this out, alright?” She gave him a calming smile. 

He gave a chuckle, then watched as the tail vanished. “ _That_ was weird. But I’m still leaving.” He shakily stood, reaching for his jeans as the doctor sighed. 

“Understood.” The doctor quickly scribbled a prescription, then handed the paper to Andy. “In case he needs it.” Then he turned and left the room.

Andy sighed and stuck it in her pocket before helping Kiba. “We’ll get back to the house and check on the others, then I’ll cook us something.”

He grinned. “Sounds good. Let’s go.”

They started walking out of the building, heading to Andy’s car. Soon though, a group of men surrounded them.

Kiba tensed, growling as his eyes turned gold. The tail reappeared as ears began taking shape through his hair.

Andy grabbed out her pistol, aiming at them. 

She was quickly disarmed, arms wrapping around her tightly. She struggled against them but couldn’t get free.

Kiba was suddenly gone, a massive black wolf springing toward the men with a deep growl.

One man shot Kiba with a tranquilizing dart, hoping to knock him to the ground.

The wolf fell, whining as it landed painfully. There was the sound of something snapping, the wolf shakily rising. He favored his right paw, swaying for a moment before toppling over.

Andy continued to struggle as she was tossed into a van, after her hands were tied up. Kiba was thrown in next and Andy tried to heal him as she wondered where they were being taken. 

Once the van stopped, the door slid open quickly. She groaned as she was pulled roughly by her arm. Soon she was led to a cold room, strung up to the wall. She watched Kiba be muzzled and locked into shackles across the room and she prayed they weren’t planning to hurt him. 

She shivered, wondering how long they’d been down there when someone finally entered the room. A few vampires entered, smirking when they saw her. 

“You’ve been a pain for us for a while,” one spoke angrily, “We’re definitely going to have fun with you.”

Andy saw one of them lay out a tray of weapons on the table in front of her.

“What should we start with?” He fingered through them before picking up a whip and snapping it at her. She winced as it cut through her chest. He did it a few more times until she finally screamed. He smiled widely, “That’s what we want to hear.” He laughed, “We’ll be back soon for more fun.”

Andy watched as they left the room, wondering which of the weapons would be used next.

Kiba whined, trying to escape the shackles. He hadn’t reverted, his gold eyes pained. His injured paw hung limp. He tried to force the muzzle off with no success.

Andy looked at him sadly, “Sorry we got kidnapped.”

Kiba shook his head, locking his eyes on hers.

_‘I’m the one who’s sorry. I can’t help you like this.’_ his voice echoed in her head.

“As long as you’re okay, I’ll be fine,” she gave him a small confident smile.

_‘Liar. Do you mind if I lose my shit when I get free?’_

_‘I’m not entirely lying. Yeah, I might get hurt, but as long as you aren’t, I’ll be happy.’_ Andy sighed before giving a small chuckle, “You are a cute wolf.”

He rolled his eyes, then tensed as a vampire entered. He looked young, his eyes glinting as he started dancing in front of Kiba. “I wonder how much fun it’d be to bite you?” He looked over at Andy, an unhinged smile on his lips.

Andy growled, “Leave him alone.”

“Why? It’s not like he’s going to live long after you die. I think it might be fun to watch your courage disappear.” The vampire bent over Kiba’s neck, his eyes meeting Andy’s.

“What did I tell you? Don’t.” The head vampire came back into the room. He gave Andy a cruel smile before looking through the weapons again.

The other vampire grumbled, stepping away from Kiba.

Kiba closed his eyes, trying to calm his breathing.

The man picked up a few knives, taking one and slicing through Andy’s skin. His eyes brightened as an idea crossed his mind. He carved into her chest, “You’re known for being a healer, right?” The word ‘Healer’ was carved into her chest, dripping blood down her shirt. She took deep breaths trying to ignore the pain. 

The man turned away from her and headed across the room. She thought he was going to Kiba, but gave a sigh of relief when she noticed him turn back. She closed her eyes when she realized he was starting to throw the knives at her. A few missed, a few only hitting her slightly, leaving small cuts, but finally one knife hit her stomach, blood starting to ooze out around it. He grinned before heading from the room. 

Andy took a few minutes to focus on her breathing, trying to push the pain away. She wanted to curl up into the pain but she couldn’t move enough, plus she feared if she moved too much she’d hit something else with the knife still sticking in her. 

Kiba growled, desperately trying to pull free of the shackles. His eyes were now a mix of gold and crimson as he raged.

The other vampire approached Andy, running a finger through the blood and licking it with a creepy grin.

Suddenly, two shackles broke. Kiba’s lower paws were bleeding as he renewed his efforts.

The crazy vampire paused, looking toward the door uncertainly, baring his fangs.

Andy snarled at him to distract him from Kiba. 

He turned back to her slowly.

Kiba forced his injured paw out of the shackle, his heart dropping as the door reopened.

The leader looked at the other vampire, “Are you enjoying our play toy?”

“She’s fun. He’s not.”

“You just want to bite him, don’t you?” The man sighed.

“I like watching the terror in their eyes.” He gave a childish giggle. “But I won’t disobey you.”

He looked thoughtful, “Fine, you can have him. It’ll upset her more.”

The other vampire’s eyes glittered. He turned and went over to Kiba. He yanked the injured paw up, slowly lowering his lips.

Kiba let out a high pitched whimper as the fangs sliced through his wrist. The whimpering grew louder as the vampire deliberately bit down harder, then pulled away with a smile.

The vampire slowly swallowed the blood, grinning at Andy insanely. 

Andy struggled against the ties holding her up as tears filled her eyes. 

“Alright, what fun should we have next?” A syringe was picked up filled with bright orange liquid. It was injected into Andy’s neck, her screaming as pain raced through her. She felt like she was being burned from the inside out. Tears fell down her cheeks as it overwhelmed her.

Kiba shook violently, the virus spreading rapidly. He wanted to attack the vampires, but his body wouldn’t respond. He dimly registered the other shackle being released, falling to the floor. His paw burned from the bite and he could feel wetness running into his fur. He weakly raised his eyes to Andy as the vampire knelt beside him with a giggle.

Andy tried to focus on Kiba but the pain was too much to handle. She writhed against the wall, the ties rubbing her wrists raw. 

The man laughed cruelly as he watched, trying to decide what tool to use next. She was soon injected with another drug. She started seeing her friends, and, though she knew she was hallucinating, she struggled not to believe they were real with how they looked. Soon though they turned on her, the pain from the other drug mixing with the new one made her start seeing her friends hurting her. She shook her head, trying to convince herself it wasn’t real but as another injection was given she lost herself to the drugs visions and pain.

Kiba’s eyes grew wet as he watched Andy’s agony. He hung his head, guilt washing over him. He curled up as a stabbing pain shot through him at the same time he felt fire on his skin. He felt fangs on his neck. Slowly he closed his eyes, praying the pain would end quickly.

The door suddenly burst open, a huge white wolf charging into the room. It jumped for the vampire torturing Kiba, ripping his throat out. As the vampire fell, Jack swooped in, face transformed in rage.

The one who was watching Andy turned, his face transforming as he prepared to fight. He lifted a gun off the table, preparing to fire it.

Jack hissed as Ryon leapt forward. The wolf bit the hand holding the gun, but was knocked aside. The vampire biker flashed his fangs, aiming for the man’s throat. He felt the burn of a bullet as he sank his fangs into the other.

The man went down quickly, falling to the floor.

Andy was sobbing, still fighting the images in her head.

Ryon shifted human, starting to untie her. “It’s okay now. You’re safe.” He gently wrapped his arms around her.

Andy slowly looked at him before muttering, “Need to save Kiba.”

Jack was kneeling beside the now human detective who was deathly still. Two sets of fang wounds in his neck and wrist oozed dark blood. The vampire met the shifter’s eyes, shaking his head.

Ryon held Andy tighter. “You can’t. He’s got too much virus in him.”

Andy shook her head, eyes blank, “I can save him. Let me try.”

He looked at her sadly, then helped her to Kiba’s side.

Andy reached into her pocket, finding the drug that was killing vampires. She injected some into him then focused on helping it destroy the virus. It took about an hour, but when she was done, she injected him with the antidote for the drug to prevent him from getting sick. She got his breathing back to normal before sitting back on the floor and staring at him.

“We need to get out of here.” Jack groaned, one hand bloodstained where he held his side. He closed his eyes with a grimace.

Ryon gently lifted Kiba and headed out the door.

Andy was still dealing with some of the pain and visions from the medicine, though it was less than before. She continued to sit there, not registering what was happening around her.

Jack struggled to his feet as Ryon returned. “Get her.” The vampire stumbled out of the room as the shifter gently pulled Andy to her feet.

“Come on, let’s get out of here.” His voice was soft as he started leading her toward the exit.

Andy stumbled slightly but followed his lead, unsure what was really going on. She had known Kiba needed help, but other than that, her mind was fuzzy.

Ryon helped her climb into the car, belting her in. He frowned at Jack in the passenger seat, then started the car.

An hour later, they were pulling up to the ranch. Parking, Ryon opened the door to speak to Tet. After a minute, the dragon went to Andy, unbuckling her carefully. “Hey? Can you walk?”

She stared at him for a moment before shakily getting out of the car.

He wrapped an arm around her, leading her toward the house as Ryon brought Kiba in. The wolf gently laid him on a bed, then eyed the semi conscious Jack. “Get in a bed, fangs.”

Jack squinted at him with exasperation. “I’m fine. I’ll heal.”

Andy looked over slowly before making her way toward him. She raised her hands and focused on his wound, quickly closing it.

Jack closed his eyes briefly, then gently pushed Andy onto a bed. “You didn’t have to do that. You need to rest.” He left the room as more voices were heard.

Andy stared up at the ceiling, eyes blinking slowly and sleepily. 

Ryon covered her with a blanket, giving her a soft kiss on the forehead. “Sleep.”

Andy soon drifted off, the exhaustion taking over.

When she woke, she blinked her eyes open slowly, her mind a mix of confusion.

Daiki gave her a soft smile. “Feeling better?” He was sitting in between her and Kiba’s beds.

She looked around a moment, “I think the hallucinations have stopped. I’m really sore though.”

“I bet. The healer said you would be for awhile.” He gently brushed Kiba’s bangs back before looking at her. “Ryon said he turned into a wolf..”

“Yeah,” Andy nodded. “He was really confused.”

“Remember when I told you our parents hid from him? There was another reason. They weren’t a normal couple.”

“Two different kinds of shifters?”

Daiki nodded. “Dad was a wolf, mom was a dragon. Doctors told them there was a possibility that their children would be..different.”

“Okay, so he can turn into both. What’s the big deal?”

“Other than being shunned by most shifters because he’s not pureblood? No one knows what the possible risks are.”

“Shifters are so used to being shunned, why would they do that to someone else?” Andy looked a bit surprised.

“Young ones don’t. Older ones are locked into tradition and bloodlines. Vampires are similar. You haven’t noticed that you haven’t met others with Conner’s group? He’s a bit outcast.”

Andy nodded slowly. 

A loud squawk from the living room followed by laughter made Daiki roll his eyes. “Guess it’s mess with the bird day.”

“Bird?”

“Thought you met Hino?”

“Is he a bird..?”

Daiki chuckled. “Yeah, a phoenix. Mean as hell when he’s pissed. Just hope he doesn’t attack anyone right now.” He started to stand up. “You should rest more, but you’re probably going to resist so I’ll save my breath.” He left the room, chastising the others loudly.

Andy moved to the chair next to Kiba’s bed, watching him for a bit before falling back to sleep. She sat there dozing for a while, occasionally waking to check on her boyfriend.

Conner and Kenji crept in, a smile appearing on both their faces as they saw the scene. They began to leave quietly.

Andy sat up and opened her eyes, spotting them. She sent them a small smile, “Hey.”

They turned back, blushing.

“Didn’t mean to wake you.” Kenji blew her a kiss.

“We just wanted to check on you.” Conner added.

“I’ll be fine, I think. How are you two feeling?”

“We’re okay, though Yoshi says it was quite close for both of us.” Kenji walked to her side, kissing her hand. “Thank you for not giving up.”

She gave him a smile in response before glancing over at Kiba.

His eyes were slowly opening, confusion in them.

“Hey, you finally with us?”

“How am I not dead?” 

“Because once again I saved you from the virus. Had some drugs to help this time though.”

He looked at her sadly. “If I had protected you better..”

“Don’t worry about it,” Andy shook her head. “You did what you could and I’m grateful for that. We’re both alive and that’s what matters, right?”

He sighed heavily. “Guess so. Now I can just freak out about having two shifts when I shouldn’t.”

“Apparently your parents were two kinds of shifters,” Andy sighed, “I think it’s cool though.”

Kiba sat up in shock. “What?”

“Daiki said they hid it from you, but your dad was a wolf and your mom was a dragon.”

He sat staring down at the bed for a minute before slowly shaking his head. “So I’m a double..I’ll be damned.”

Kenji chuckled. “Pretty sure you already have been since you’re in _this_ squad.”

Daiki returned, a relieved smile appearing as he saw his brother awake. “You guys up for a party?”

“A party? For what?” Andy raised an eyebrow.

“Surviving. The case is solved and we’re all alive. Tsukasa says that’s a reason to celebrate. He’s on his way home. Shouma and Ryusei are enroute with a guest. So it’s time to eat, drink and be merry.”

Andy looked at Kiba, “You up for a party?”

He thought for a minute, then gave her a smile. “Why the hell not? We need to relax.” He moved so he could kiss her.

Andy smiled and kissed him back, “Alright then.” She stood slowly, stretching out before waiting for him to get up.

He slowly stood, then took her hand and headed for the living room.

The front door opened, Shouma entering. Ryusei was next, holding hands with a petite woman who gave Andy a smile.

Andy smiled and gave Meiko a hug before going back to Kiba.

Kiba whispered “The Christmas party worked didn’t it?”

She smiled and nodded. 

Ryusei approached her cautiously, eyes on the floor.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” Andy asked softly.

“Stupid. Should have known better. Instead I made trouble for everyone.”

“It’s okay. We were just worried about you.”

“Thank you for saving me _again_.” He raised his eyes with a grateful smile.

“Not a problem,” she smiled back.

The door opened again, Tsukasa popping his head inside. “Can someone help me unload?”

Andy chuckled, “I’ll get it.” She headed outside, lifting the load with her telekinesis.

He grinned at her. “Ready for some fun?”

“Hopefully,” she smiled, carrying the stuff inside.

“Did you buy out the store?” Daiki’s eyes widened as he gave Tsukasa a kiss.

“Maybe?” The captain returned the kiss, then frowned as he saw Ankh heading for the door. “Where are you going?”

“Not part of your squad.” The commander mumbled.

“You helped with the case though, so I think that means you can stay,” Andy grinned.

He looked at her for a minute, then nodded before warning “If Jack doesn’t stop teasing me, I might kick his ass.”

Tsukasa started laughing. “Understood and I’ll let you.”

Kiba handed her a plastic cup. “Enjoy. Hey, who wants to do a drinking game to the government’s q&a tonight?”

Andy raised an eyebrow, “That’ll get dangerous. I’m in.”

He laughed as one by one, the squad accepted the challenge.

Tsukasa headed out onto the deck. “Gonna get the grill ready.”

Daiki followed, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend.

Everyone started talking amongst themselves.

Andy stared at her drink for a bit, zoning out in her thoughts.

Soon, there was a pile of food laid out and everyone started eating. 

Ankh was working on his third plate when he caught Andy staring. “Something on my face?”

She shook her head, “Sorry, not entirely with it right now.”

He nodded. “Not surprising. Wish I’d been there to hurt them.”

Andy gave a small smile.

“If something like that ever happened to Eiji..” He trailed off, eyes distant.

“Who’s Eiji?”

“My husband. Also my second in command. He’s out of town right now.” Ankh gave a fond smile.

“I look forward to meeting him sometime,” she smiled.

“It’s a date.” Ankh grinned, dimples showing as Daiki turned on the tv. 

“Everyone, get your drink of choice.” He stood in front of the screen. “There’s only one rule- take a drink every time the official says something we _know_ is bullshit. Have fun!” He moved aside as the broadcast started.

Andy glanced at Kiba, “We’ll be drunk in five minutes.”

He laughed. “Probably.” He toasted the tv. “Let the lying begin.”

Twenty minutes in, Andy was giggling, “Do people actually believe this shit?”

Tsukasa shrugged as he took a drink from his bottle. “If they are brain dead morons.”

A couple hours in, Andy was stuck in a giggling fit, groaning between laughs at the residual pain from her injuries. When she finally got air in and calmed down she looked at Kiba, “Hey. This is fun.”

He laughed. “Yeah.. might be dangerous to our health though.” He rose unsteadily and shut the TV off, surveying the squad.

Ryusei was snoring, head pillowed on Meiko’s lap. She was blearily running her fingers through his hair.

The vampires were curled up beside each other, sound asleep.

Daiki was holding a semi awake Tsukasa. He grinned at his brother.

Ankh and Ryon had drifted to a corner, tangled in a knot as they played twister. They were so uncoordinated, they kept falling over as they laughed.

Andy took another sip of her drink, looking up at Kiba.

“Got any good ideas for things to do?” He gave her a drunk grin.

Andy smirked, “I can think of something we could do.”

His eyes widened, then he reached for her hand and led her to a bedroom.


	9. Chapter 9

A repeatedly ringing phone broke the silence of the bedroom. It stopped briefly, then restarted.

Andy picked up her phone and answered, “Hey, what’s up?”

“Sorry to bother you on your day off, but how fast can you get to the hospital?” Tsukasa’s voice was panicky, his breathing fast.

“I’ll be there in ten,” she hung up and quickly got ready. When she arrived she found him, “What’s going on?”

“Some of the squad went on a raid with SWAT. We were outgunned and several of the shifters were hurt.. This fucking doctor won’t listen! He’s almost killed Daiki twice with the wrong drugs..” Tsukasa was close to losing control, his eyes shining bright yellow.

Andy nodded, “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of them.” Andy entered Daiki’s room first, checking the chart to see what they’d given him before trying to stabilize his vitals.

A nurse entered, then froze. “Who are you? You’re not authorized to be in here.”

“He’s family.”

She glared for a moment, then stalked out.

Alarms began in another room.

Andy went into the room with alarms, finding Ankh. She looked him over noticing the same drug in him as Daiki. She frowned as she tried to steady his vitals.

A white coated doctor quickly entered, growing indignant as he saw her. “Get away from my patient! You’re killing him!” He tried to push her away. “I’ll call security if you don’t leave at once!”

“You’re the one killing him!” Andy growled but exited the room and went to find Tsukasa.

Tsukasa was in the waiting room, being comforted by another man in SWAT fatigues. He looked up at her. “How is he?”

“We need to get them out of here. These doctors keep giving them medicine that’s not compatible with shifters.” She sighed, “Can’t I just bite anyone who tries to stop me healing them?”

The other man laughed. “You sound like Ankh about the bureaucrats.”

Tsukasa was about to answer when the same doctor came out of another room behind a covered gurney. “No…”

“Excuse me, sir, who is that?” Andy tried to be polite.

He glared at her. “Detective Kanamoto just passed. We did everything possible. Now, I have my rounds to make.” He entered the elevator and disappeared.

Tsukasa’s head dropped as his shoulders began to shake.

Andy’s rage grew, “How many of our men are here? Tet, Daiki, Ankh?”

The other man sighed sadly. “Ryon’s in the morgue along with two of my friends.”

“They’ve killed four people already?!” Andy looked at the two, “Tsukasa, get a van or SUV ready, we’re breaking them out. And anyone who tries to stop me will either be bitten or flung into a wall.” She looked at the man, “You come down to the morgue and ID your friends for me, they’re coming with too.”

He shrugged. “They aren’t shifters. But okay.”

Andy sighed, “I can still help them, hopefully.” She headed to the elevator and waited.

He entered, pressing the button for the basement. 

When they arrived, the man quickly moved to check tags. Then he uncovered Tet, Ryon and two other men.

Andy took a deep breath, “Let’s make this quick,” she lifted the four up into the air before exiting the room. She made it out the nearest exit and got them into the car before heading back inside to get Daiki and Ankh. 

She headed up the stairs to get into their rooms. She lifted Daiki before going to the next room and lifting Ankh. She headed out into the hall, trying to get to the exit before being caught.

The doctor stood there, security behind him. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Oh, did you not hear? They’re being checked out,” Andy answered snarkily.

“They are medically fragile. That is not recommended.” The doctor stared at her. “You’re the one who accused me of trying to kill them!”

“I can keep them alive better than you can,” Andy answered. “And they’re coming with me.” They were floating up in the air, above the doctors reach.

“They need constant medication. How can you take care of them?”

“The medicine you’re giving them isn’t good for them because they’re shifters! And I’m a healer.”

The doctor’s face went red in rage. “Are you telling me how to care for them, you quack?”

“Yes, I am,” Andy flashed her fangs, “Care to fight me on it?”

His face went pale and he backed away from her in terror. The security force stepped away quietly.

“That’s what I thought.” Andy passed him and headed to the exit. She finally got to the car and looked at Tsukasa, “My place is closest if we want to go there so I can work on them.”

The captain nodded, as the other man gently held Ankh close.

They arrived, carrying everyone in and setting them on guest beds. She started with Daiki and Ankh, fighting the medicine in their bodies to try to prevent it from doing more damage. Soon after, their breathing and heart rates were back up to a normal pace.

Next she went to Tet and Ryon, healing them up before focusing on reviving them. She then did the same with the other two men. She stepped away, glancing at Tsukasa, “They should all be okay now.”

He gave her a shaky smile. “I’m really sorry about this. That doctor thinks he’s God. Numerous complaints but nothing’s been done.” He watched the other man as he clasped Ankh’s hand. “I don’t want anyone lost because of someone’s fucking prejuidice.”

“I know,” Andy nodded. She looked at the other man, “You’re Eiji, I presume?”

He gave her a shy smile. “Ankh mentioned you. Said you threw quite a party.”

Andy chuckled, “Yeah, it was an interesting night.”

“What am I doing here?” Tet sat up confused.

“I broke you out of the hospital.”

“The staff not up to your standards?” He gave her a small grin.

“Well, when they keep giving shifters medicine not good for them..” Andy sighed, “Plus he was just a massive asshole.”

Ryon snickered, opening one eye before speaking. “You’re telling me. I got grazed by a bullet. I was expecting a patch up, but he injected me with something. Next thing I know, I couldn’t breathe and then lights out.” He winced slightly as he sat up. 

“Yeah, he tried to stop me when I was getting Daiki and Ankh out.. I threatened him and he got scared,” Andy chuckled.

The other two men opened their eyes, then stared at Andy.

“Welcome to my house, hope you’re feeling better,” she gave them a small smile.

Eiji laughed for a moment, then moved over to them. “Shintaro Gotou, Akira Date meet Andy Takimoto. She’s Kiba’s partner at the 115. Also the host of the drinking party Ankh told us about.”

Gotou nodded quietly as Date started laughing. “I was sorry I missed it. Not sure why we’re here, but thanks for the hospitality.”

Andy smirked, “I’m sure we’ll have another party sometime you guys can come to.”

He gave her a bright smile before looking over at Ankh. “Birdboy okay?”

Eiji face palmed. “If he hears you call him that…”

Andy chuckled, “He should be fine.”

Tsukasa sighed. “You think there will be problems from this?”

“Do you mean the medicine and them or the fact that I threatened a doctor and kidnapped patients...?”

“Either one.”

“I’m hoping the doctor is too afraid of me now to do anything, and the medicine hopefully won’t leave any long lasting side effects.”

He nodded, then gave her a smile. “I need to go to the station. Can you watch them?”

She smiled, “Yeah, I’ll be their babysitter.”

Tsukasa laughed. “I should be back in fifteen. I promise I’ll make this up to you.” He left the house with a wave.

Andy glanced over at Daiki and Ankh who were still unconscious.

Tet noticed, moving to her side. “Something wrong?”

She shook her head, “I’m surprised you guys woke up before them, but I guess their bodies are still fighting the medicine a bit.” She went to check them over again before sitting down.

Tet sighed, then headed for the kitchen.

Ankh and Daiki woke simultaneously. Daiki sighed as he recognized his surroundings. Ankh stared at Eiji in confusion. “Where are we?”

“Welcome to my house,” Andy answered.

“We were in the hospital, weren’t we?” The blond gave Eiji a smile.

“The hospital got a one star from her on Yelp probably.” Daiki snarked as he sat up.

“The hospital probably would have been fine, if it didn’t have such an asshole working for them,” Andy answered. 

Tet laughed, tossing bottles of water to the others as he returned.

“Where’s Tsukasa?” Daiki took a long drink.

“Said he was going to the station.”

A half hour went by, the men having all left except for Daiki. “I should probably go see if he needs help.

There was a faint knock at the door.

Andy went to answer it, wondering if it was Tsukasa.

The tiger fell into her arms, shaking violently. His eyes were yellow, stripes appearing and disappearing on his skin.

Andy helped get him inside, “What happened?” She worked on scanning him over.

“That asshole.. Came over saying he wanted to apologize. Then he stuck me with something. He was laughing, saying he wondered if you could heal this..” His eyes rolled up and he passed out.

Andy cursed, lifting him onto the couch before working to heal him. She struggled fighting the drug in his system, “Daiki, any chance you know how to formulate antidotes in the lab?”

He raised an eyebrow, then nodded.

She quickly took a blood sample, “I’ll keep working on stabilizing him, go figure this part out,” she handed him the sample.

He took it, running out the door.

Tsukasa went still, his stripes disappearing. His breathing was erratic, long pauses between breaths.

Andy struggled to keep him breathing. She was hyper focused on her job, hoping Daiki would hurry.

Daiki raced in, breathing hard. He handed her a syringe as he tried to calm his heart rate.

She injected it and continued trying to stabilize him.

Daiki grabbed one of his hands. “Don’t you leave me..”

Tsukasa suddenly took a deep breath. 

Andy gave a small smile, letting go for a moment and seeing if he would stay stable.

He struggled to open his eyes. “He’s after us. He’s planning to poison the entire squad..”

Daiki swore, reaching for his cell. He tried several numbers,pacing in frustration. “No one’s answering. We made plans to meet at the ranch after finishing up our monthly reports.”

“Go make more antidote in case we need it, then find the team. I’m going to find that doctor,” Andy growled.

Daiki nodded, looking at Tsukasa.

“I’ll be fine. Just find them.”

The detective took a deep breath, then ran out of the house.

Kiba whistled as he entered the station. He hated out of town testimony, especially when the monthly reports were due. He frowned as he found the squad room dark and went to flip the lights. He felt a prick in his neck, then nothing.

Andy sat in her car for a moment trying to decide where to go. She started with the hospital, heading to the doctors office and finding it closed. She took a deep breath before heading back to the car to rethink where he could be. She remembered Tsukasa had been headed to the station when he got attacked so she headed off toward there to check it out.

Her phone rang.

“Andy here, what’s up?”

“Tracked everyone down except for Kiba. Ryusei says he headed back earlier, wanted to get the paperwork done and surprise you.” Daiki’s voice was grim.

“I’m heading to the station now to check things out, call me if you find him.”

“Understood.” The call ended.

  
  


Kiba tried to focus, the station spinning as he came to. He growled as he found he was bound to a chair in one of the interrogation rooms. “Let me go!”

There was no answer. He struggled against the bonds until he felt another pinch. The room wavered and his eyes rolled up. He slumped, his features starting to pale.

Andy entered the station, turning the lights on. She looked around for a moment, looking for anything out of the ordinary. She entered Tsukasa’s office first, glancing around before heading out and staring at the quiet squad room. She noticed one of the doors to an interrogation room was cracked open so she went over and slowly entered. She gasped when her eyes landed on Kiba. She went toward him, moving to untie him.

“Andy? Andy, get out of here!” Kiba’s voice was frantic as his eyes opened and he fought to speak. His chest was growing tighter with each breath. “You need to get safe from whatever is happening..”

“There’s a doctor trying to kill the squad,” Andy answered. “Just calm down and don’t worry.”

“Why?” His eyes were wide as he looked at her. “What did we do?” He grimaced as pain spiked through his chest.

“He was mistreating patients, especially the shifters, and I called him out on it and broke our friends out..”

Kiba tried to grin as he gasped for air. His lips were turning blue, his eyes glazing.

A bullet suddenly slammed into Andy’s shoulder. “No you don’t, you quack.”

Andy’s eyes widened with pain but she managed to turn to look at the shooter. A wave of anger passed through her, making her growl at the man. 

The doctor laughed. “Not such a know it all now are you?” He waved the gun at her. “Get away from him.”

She quickly lunged at the doctor, hoping to get the gun away from him.

He backhanded her, quickly putting the barrel against her head. “You’re going to watch him die. Then you’ll die knowing that I’m going to kill everyone in this squad. Slowly and painfully. I’ll leave those kids for last, make them extra painful.” He grinned maniacally as Kiba went still.

“You’re an asshole,” Andy growled again before moving quickly, pushing his arm and getting the gun pointed away from her head then wrapping a hand around his throat.

He struggled, his eyes going wide. “You can’t kill me.. You’re a cop!”

“Pretty sure since you shot me it’d count as self defence,” Andy answered, tightening her grip on his neck.

He began to thrash, his face turning red.

Andy struggled to keep his arms away as her shoulder screamed with pain.

He finally went limp, his eyes closing.

She dropped him to the floor before moving to Kiba to get him untied. She then started trying to heal any damage the drugs caused before working to get his breathing up to a normal rate.

Ryon and Tsukasa ran in, eyes widening. “Andy!”

“Is everyone else safe?” Andy double checked. 

“They’re all fine. Just worried.” Tsukasa knelt beside her, ignoring the body. “You don’t look good.”

“Pretty sure being shot will do that to you,” Andy replied, still focused on Kiba.

“Hospital? Or ranch?”

“I’d rather stay away from hospitals for a while..” she gave a small smile as Kiba’s breathing stabilized.

Tsukasa chuckled as he helped her up and Ryon grabbed Kiba. “Ranch it is.”


	10. Chapter 10

“Drop me at the bank, will you?” Kiba grinned as Tetsuya gave him a look. “Do you want to pay for lunch? I’m totally fine if you do..”

Tet scowled. “You owe me.”

Kiba chuckled. “Add it to my tab.”

Andy laughed as she watched them.

“Let’s go before I change my mind.” Tet headed out the door.

Kiba gave Andy a quick kiss before leaving.

Andy smiled as he left then went back to organizing her paperwork.

A half hour later, her phone rang.

Andy picked it up, “Takimoto here. What’s up?”

“Commander Hino.” Ankh’s voice was somber. “Are all your teammates accounted for?”

Andy looked around a moment, “Everyone’s here except Tet and Kiba. They were heading to the bank then lunch. Why?”

He cursed under his breath. “How fast can you and Kadoya meet me?”

Andy glanced up at Tsukasa’s office, “As long as he’s not busy, probably ten minutes.”

“I don’t care if he’s busy. You two _need_ to meet me **now.** ”

“Ok, I’ll go tell him then we’ll be on our way.”

The phone clicked.

Andy headed up to Tsukasa’s office, knocking before opening the door.

The tiger was dozing, his feet on his desk as he reclined. He popped an eye open. “Andy? Something wrong?”

“I don’t know what’s going on but Ankh wants us to meet him, _now.”_

Tsukasa’s feet hit the floor, then he was up and moving. “Did he say where?”

Andy cursed and grabbed out her phone, “He seemed in a hurry. I’ll call and check.” Within another minute, they had a location and were on their way.

The SWAT van was parked several feet away from the bank entrance, team members moving around hurriedly.

“What’s going on?” Andy asked worriedly.

“Hostage situation.” A skinny sharpshooter said dryly. 

“And your two idiots are in the middle of it.” Ankh climbed out of the van.

Inside, Kiba nudged Tet in concern. “How are you doing?”

Tet shrugged, once more testing his bonds. “Not dead yet, if that’s what you’re asking.” He grimaced as he tried to shift his leg. The belt cinched around his upper thigh made it next to impossible to get comfortable and he finally gave up with a sigh.

“Sorry I got you into this.” Kiba scowled.

Tet looked at him. “You’re acting like you planned this. Knock it off.”

A tall reddish blond man stalked over, pointing his gun. “Shut up or the next bullet goes in your head.”

Andy sighed, “So what’s the plan?”

“Been trying to get a bead on the leader. He’s too sneaky though, never stops moving. No demands yet. Gotou here was about to see about taking what appears to be the right hand man out. See if it gets a reaction.” Ankh was about to send him to the roof when his phone rang.

The Commander answered it. “Hino.” He was silent for several minutes, then a flicker of flames appeared around him. “You did WHAT? And you’re just _now_ informing me?” The flames were getting brighter, then he slammed the phone closed and threw it at the van. “SONOFABITCH!”

“Take a deep breath, what’s going on?” 

He didn’t answer, grabbing Gotou’s rifle and looking through the scope. His shoulders hunched over as the flames reduced. “The Chief..he put my brother in there..”

Andy sighed, “It’ll be okay. What’s the plan now?”

Tsukasa gently lay a hand on Ankh’s shoulder. “We’ll get him out, I swear it.”

Ankh whirled. “He’s not a hostage, Kadoya. He’s one of the perps.. The Chief gave me new orders..”

“What are they?”

“Take the perps out, no exceptions.” Ankh’s hands became talons and clenched, the flames flaring around him.

Tsukasa stared at him. “Wait, isn’t he a cop?”

“Well, we obviously aren’t going to take him out, but _if_ he gets in the crossfire, you know I’ll do what I can to heal him.”

Ankh nodded. “I don’t think they have any intention of making demands. I think they’re waiting for something.”

Kiba’s eyes went wide as two of the robbers laid down a briefcase and a large bag. He craned his head, going pale as he saw a timer being fiddled with as the bag was checked.

“We have a problem.” He told a semi conscious Tet.

“Another one?” Tet whispered slowly.

“Yeah. They’re setting a bomb.” Kiba tried to see what was in the briefcase. 

The same robber who’d threatened them came over and pushed the shifter down roughly.

Kiba started to fight, but stopped when he heard a whisper in his ear.

“I’m an undercover cop. Wait for my signal and I’ll get you out of here.”

Kiba’s eyes went wide as the man rose and kicked him. “I said no talking!” 

Tsukasa’s cell rang. “Kadoya.” He listened for a moment, then bit out “Like hell I will. With all due respect sir, you can go to hell.” He slammed the button, hanging up as he struggled to reign his temper.

“What now?” Andy wondered.

“The Chief ordered me to take over. He wants us to go in. Quote the hostages are secondary to the elimination of the perps unquote. He also says Hino is suspended.”

Andy growled. After a moment she sighed, “I could go hold them all against the wall while we get the hostages out. Then you can shoot the perps, other than his brother, obviously.”

Tsukasa looked thoughtful as the negotiation phone rang.

Ankh answered it. “Commander Hino. Who is this?”

“Not important. What _is_ important is the bomb timed to explode in ten minutes. We’re leaving now, have fun trying to disarm it. Oh, and by the way, pity the cop with us isn’t going to make it.”

The line went dead as Ankh stared at the ground in shock. The receiver dropped from his hand.

“What did they say?” Andy put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“There’s a bomb. Set for ten minutes. They said they were leaving. They said my brother..” He fought tears, sinking to his knees.

Tsukasa got on the phone. “Ryusei, I need you at first federal bank yesterday.” He hung up and gave Andy a look.

“Any chance we can still catch them going out the back?”

“Think they’re ‘porters. There was no alarm raised when they showed up.”

Andy sighed, “So what do we do?”

Gotou scanned the inside as the hostages suddenly came running out with his scope. “Looks like it’s empty.” His voice grew grim. “There are three bodies.”

Andy took a deep breath, “I’ll take care of them.”

Tsukasa nodded, helping Ankh up into the van as Gotou went to help the hostages.

Andy slowly entered the bank, looking around.

Tet and Kiba lay next to each other. A large amount of blood was puddled under the dragon’s leg, a belt tossed to the side.

Kiba’s shirt was soaked, a single hole through the heart.

Andy knelt beside Kiba, tears welling in her eyes as she scanned the damage. She focused on trying to heal him, regrowing the cardiac tissues before getting him to breathe again. She then moved to Tet and started on healing him.

Tsukasa appeared beside her. “Will they be alright?”

“These two will be,” she nodded before standing to approach the third body.

He was sprawled on his back, red-blond hair covering his face. A needle lay discarded to the side.

Andy knelt beside him, starting to scan for damage.

Ankh ran in, falling beside the body. He reached a shaky hand out to brush away the hair as he cried.

Andy focused on healing him, knowing it would take her a while with the amount of damage. She hoped the bomb was taken care of as she worked on building new cells in his body.

Ryusei slowly approached, taking off his bomb suit. “Bomb’s off. It was tricky, but I got it.”

Tsukasa gave him a thumbs up as EMTs started to take care of the other hostages. “Is Daiki still here?” 

Ryusei nodded.

“Have him take Tet and Kiba to the ranch. We’ll be there as soon as possible.” Tsukasa approached Ankh.

Ankh was cradling the man, staring at his face. “He wanted to be a cop like Dad and I. He worked so hard..”

Andy didn’t take her eyes off of the man, continuing to focus on healing him. She then started getting his heart pumping again and he finally sucked in air. 

Ankh jumped, looking between the two of them in shock. “What did you do?”

“Healed him. Revived him.” Andy answered. “I thought you knew I could do that?”

“Difference between knowing and seeing.” The shifter took a deep breath and turned to Tsukasa. “Can you take care of him? I have to write my report so I have something to shove down the Chief’s throat before I set him ablaze.”

Tsukasa tried not to smile, nodding his head. 

“Don’t worry, we’ll watch him,” Andy assured.

Ankh stood, striding out the door, flames dancing across his frame.

“What are the odds I’m going to have to bail him out of jail?” The Captain shot a semi amused look at Andy.

Kiba groaned, pushing his eyes open. He recognized the ranch immediately, sighing. He looked over to see Tet reading. “You okay?”

Tet grinned. “Thanks to Andy. My question is why is _he_ here?” The dragon looked over at the third bed.

“He’s a cop. Undercover. He tried to help us and I’m guessing they hurt him.”

Andy stood in the doorway, “Good to see you up. and yeah, they definitely hurt him.”

“Who is he? He kinda looks familiar?” Tet frowned.

“Ankh’s brother.”

Kiba chuckled. “Should have known by the attitude.”

The man opened one eye, glaring at Kiba. “You have a problem with my attitude?”

Kiba quickly shook his head as the man sat up, flames starting to flicker.

“TAKAHASHI INOUE ADACHI! You knock it off right now.” Ankh glared at the younger man from the doorway. “Be polite to your new teammates or I’ll fry your ass.” 

“You wouldn’t dare.” Takahashi glowered.

Ankh stalked toward him. “Try me.”

Andy chuckled as she watched them.

The younger man scowled, then the flames disappeared.

Ankh gave him a tight hug, which after a moment was returned. “I was terrified I’d lost you.”

Takahashi nodded. “Sorry, Aniki.”

Tsukasa stood by the door. “I think he’ll fit right in.”


	11. Chapter 11

Andy entered her house, followed by Kiba. She headed to the kitchen and got started on dinner before joining him in the living room. “Movie time? Or binge watching a show?”

“Binging sounds fun. What do you suggest?” He grinned at her.

“I don’t know. There’s a lot of new stuff up on the streaming sites,” she pulled them up and started browsing. “Are you staying over tonight?”

“Only if you want me to.” He looked thoughtful. “I could just stop bouncing around and move in..”

Andy chuckled, “I was just about to suggest that. If you want to, of course.”

“Anything to get away from my brother constantly swooning over Tsukasa. You’d think they were newlyweds.” He shuddered before wrapping his arms around her. “I’d be happy to move in.”

She pulled him in for a kiss, “I love you.”

He returned it with a smile. “I love you too.”

Andy’s cell rang at the same time Kiba’s did. He answered it, his face darkening at whatever he was being told. He nodded several times, then hung up silently.

Andy answered hers quickly, “Hey, what’s up?”

“Andy, I don’t feel good…” Shouma’s voice was pained.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be right there,” Andy answered, hanging up before looking at Kiba. “I need to go help Shouma.”

“He’s sick  _ too _ ? That was Conner. The twins are sick as well.” Kiba scowled.

“I’ll help them out after I check out Shouma. You want to come with or stay here?”

He was about to answer when his phone rang again. He answered, then growled “Find out what the  _ fuck _ is going on, okay?” He hung up again, eyes flickering.

“What’s wrong?”

“Tet was just admitted to the shifter wing of the hospital. They think he has some kind of virus.”

“Think all three of these cases of illness are related?”

“Not sure. If they were all vamps, yeah. It is amazingly coincidental though. Let’s go see Shouma.”

Andy nodded, grabbing her stuff before heading out the door. 

When they arrived, Andy entered, finding where Shouma was. “So what doesn’t feel good exactly? All over? Nausea? Headache?”

“Everything. I can’t keep anything down. My head is pounding.” The teen was flushed and shaky where he lay on the couch. “Feels like I have the flu, but we don’t get sick anymore.”

“Did you do anything out of the ordinary the last couple days?” Andy wondered as she tried to regulate his temperature and help the pain in his head.

“No. Only thing is this was the week for replenishing my blood supply.” He shrugged, then grimaced.

Andy looked thoughtful, “Could be blood related, if the twins have it too? But Tet... did he have a blood transfusion for some reason?” Andy glanced at Kiba before continuing to try to help Shouma.

“Shit. He got hurt while we were on vacation.” Kiba frowned.

Andy looked at the teen, “Do you have more of the blood so I could take a sample?”

The teen pointed. “In the fridge. About eight bags.” He was fighting sleep.

“Just rest,” she brushed his hair from his face. “I’ll test the sample and I’ll be back when I know more.” She smiled gently before getting a sample and looking at Kiba, “If we have one sample to test, why don’t you just call and see if they replenished their blood supply this week too? Then we can try making an antidote if that’s the case.” She frowned, “But who is targeting them?”

Kiba shrugged as he made the call. After he hung up, he sighed. “Conner says yeah they did get blood today. As for targeting, vampires have a blood bank they get it from. There’s been a few times of tainted stuff getting through, so it might not be related to us at all.”

“Hope I don’t have to deal with that,” Andy sighed before heading to the car.

“Unless it turns out you’re right or it becomes an outbreak of something, I think you’ll be fine. Drop you at the lab?” Kiba started the car.

“Yeah. Hopefully it won’t take me long to identify whatever is in the blood.”

“Alright. I’ll go see Tet, then ask around to see if anyone else is sick.” Kiba pulled into traffic, quickly dropping her at the police lab.

Andy started the testing process, clearly seeing a compound not supposed to be there. She struggled identifying it though, so she worked for the next couple hours on breaking it down and working to find something to fight it.

Kiba looked grim when he walked in. “Definitely blood borne. Starting to get paranoid.”

“Well, unless you get hurt, you should have nothing to worry about. And I think I’ve found an antidote,” she looked up for a moment, “How’s Tet?”

“Going downhill fast. And no one else is reporting being ill, so you’re right about being targeted. Luckily, everyone’s still alive. At least that we know of.” He clenched his fist and scowled.

“Well, let’s start running this antidote to our friends and hope it works.”

He nodded, pulling out his phone to alert the vampires. “Still nothing?” He growled as he obviously received a negative answer from whoever was on the other end. “Keep trying.” He hung up, his eyes dark with worry.

“What’s wrong?”

“Kenji went on vacation yesterday after picking up his blood. Neither Conner or Jack have been able to reach him.”

“Where was he heading?”

“We don’t know. He said it was personal. I’m hoping it’s not out of the country.”

“Can Ryusei track his phone?”

“Why didn’t I think of that?” Kiba face palmed, rapidly dialing. “Ryusei, find Kenji. Track his phone. This is a matter of life and death.” He hung up and looked at her. “Where to first?”

“We should probably help Tet first if he’s going downhill. Hopefully the Vampires don’t get any worse.”

“Alright.” He headed for the car. “I’ll wait for you.”

Andy finished filling the vials of antidote and headed out to meet him.

He was slumped in the driver’s seat, phone open in his hand. Tears streamed down his cheeks.

Andy opened the door slowly, “What happened?”

“Tet..” he shook his head.

Andy frowned, trying to keep calm, “I’ll head over to Shouma’s. You work on breaking Tet out of the morgue so I can see if I can help him.”

He nodded, starting the car and heading toward the teen’s.

Andy entered and went to Shouma, scanning him over to see how he was doing.

He was unconscious, his fever high.

Andy injected him with a dose of the medicine then worked on lowering his temperature.

An hour later, his eyes opened. “Andy?”

“Hey,” she gave a small smile, “How are you feeling?”

“Tired. But better.” He gave her a smile. “Thanks.”

Her phone rang.

“What’s up?”

Kiba’s voice was hard. “This was definitely an attack. Conner just got a message. How’s Shouma?”

“He’s doing better. What’s the message?”

“Cleaning up Japan one city at a time. Signed the SHJ.” His voice was a growl, close to losing control.

“SHJ?”

“Society for Human Japan. We’ve had an eye on this group for awhile, but other than protesting there was nothing we could get anyone on.”

Andy growled, “So how will we get blood if that’s not even safe anymore?” She took a deep breath, “Did you get Tet?”

“Tsukasa is dealing with the blood angle. I got Tet. He’s.. with the twins. I’m coming to get you.”

Andy frowned, but didn’t say anything except, “Okay,” before hanging up.

She gave Shouma a smile, “Get rid of the rest of that blood so you don’t get sick again. I’m going to help a few other friends, but if you need me, just call.”

The teen nodded as Kiba honked the horn.

Andy left quickly, getting into the car. “Has Ryusei found Kenji yet?”

He shook his head. “When Kenji goes dark, it’s like a needle in a haystack.” He headed for Conner’s house, pulling up the driveway twenty minutes later.

Conner and Jack met them somberly.

Andy sighed, “Hopefully I can still help them..”

“I have faith.” Conner gave her a smile, his eyes slightly glassy.

Andy entered the house, finding her three friends laying on beds. She went to the twins and started trying to revive them. Within minutes, they were breathing again. She then did the same for Tet. Then gave them some of the antidote in case the virus was still in their bodies.

Conner entered behind her with a brittle smile. “Glad to see I was..” He lost his balance, falling to the floor.

Andy knelt beside him, “Did you drink the blood too?”

He gave her an apologetic smile. “Just a little before the twins did. We older ones don’t need much. Thought I was okay..” He curled into a ball as the pain hit.

Andy injected antidote into his arm before moving him to a bed. She made sure he was okay before leaving the room. She glanced at Jack, “You didn’t have any of the blood, did you?”

“No.. Don’t tell me..”

“Conner will be fine, I gave him some of the antidote.”

Kiba answered his phone. His eyes went red, his voice tight. “Thanks. I’ll go down there.” He closed the phone, then threw it across the room. His hands were starting to change.

Andy put a calming hand on his shoulder, “What’s wrong?”

“We found Kenji. Or rather the Kyoto police did..”

“Did he die?” Andy asked worriedly.

“Yeah. Looks like sometime last night after checking into his hotel. They gave us permission to come get him.”

Andy nodded slowly, “I’ve never revived someone dead more than a few hours.. Do you think I’ll be able to help him?”

“I don’t know..” Kiba looked at her, tears on his face. “I can’t lose him..”

Jack’s eyes went wide. “You’re the one he told me about, aren’t you? You and Daiki..”

Andy raised an eyebrow, “I’d love to hear this story.. How about you tell me while I drive?”

Kiba gave a chuckle. “Okay.”

Jack walked them to the car. “I’ll keep an eye on them. You go get him.”

Andy started the car and waited for Kiba to get settled before taking off. 

Kiba buckled his belt slowly, taking a deep breath.

“So tell me, what was that about?”

“You know how old Kenji is, right?” Kiba gave her a look.

“Yeah?”

“He’s our great grandfather.”

Andy glanced at him in surprise before nodding, “Okay. Not what I was expecting, but interesting.”

He started laughing. “You expected a relationship story? You thought we were lovers?”

Andy started laughing, “No. Not sure what I was expecting honestly, but neither of those options.”

“Yeah, it was weird when we found out. He raised us after our parents..” Kiba smiled sadly. “To think a bunch of closed minded bigots may have taken him away from me..”

“You know I’ll do everything I can to help him.”

He gave her a smile, wiping his eyes. “Yeah, I know.”

She continued driving toward their destination, eventually pulling up to the address. “Ready?”

He took a deep breath, unlatching his belt. “Yeah.” He climbed out of the car, then hesitated. His eyes closed briefly, then he continued walking. He showed his badge, then was directed to a small room. Before entering, he reached for Andy’s hand.

Andy gave him a confident squeeze, “It’ll be alright.”

He gave her a grateful smile, then entered.

A woman with a clipboard bowed, then handed him some papers to sign. When that was done, she bowed again and exited. Kiba turned to the white sheeted gurney, his hand shaking in Andy’s.

“Do you want me to try to revive him here or should we get him out then I try?”

“The longer we wait, the less chance right? Do it now. Please.”

Andy injected a bit of antidote into Kenji’s arm after she moved the sheet down. She then focused on his heart, struggling to get it beating again. She focused hard, manually beating his heart until it finally started on it’s own. He sucked in air, and she made sure his breathing was stable before looking at Kiba, “He should be okay now.”

He took a deep breath, then nodded. “Let’s get him in the car.”

Andy helped him get Kenji into the car, buckling him into a back seat.

“I’ll drive. Just in case he needs something.” Kiba started the car and headed towards home.

Andy occasionally scanned over Kenji while they rode home, making sure everything was staying stabilized. 

His dark eyes fluttered open and he looked around in confusion. “Ooh la la, did I drink too much?”

“You drank tainted blood and died,” Andy answered. “So we came to rescue you.”

His eyes widened, then he looked at Kiba sadly. “I am sorry you had to do this.”

Kiba shook his head, his eyes watching the mirror. “No apologies. Just don’t turn your damn phone off anymore alright?”

Kenji chuckled and nodded.

“How are you feeling?” Andy wondered.

“Fine. You said tainted blood?”

“It was an attack. Shouma, the twins, Conner and Tet all got sick.”

“Tet’s not a vampire.” His forehead furrowed.

“But he was given blood.”

Kiba pulled to the side of the road. “That means either the hospital supply is tainted also or someone deliberately gave it to him.”

“Should we call the hospital or assume it was deliberate?”

“I’ll call the squad. If they haven’t gotten any other calls, I’d say it was deliberate.” He dialed, then asked “Bro, any more cases from the hospital?” He waited, then answered “Thanks. We got him and he’s fine. We’ll see you in the morning.” He flipped the phone closed, then looked at Andy. “No new cases.”

“So people from that group are in the hospital too?”

Kiba grimaced, averting his eyes. “Hoped that loon was the only one, dammit.”

“What do we do?”

“Find them.”

“How? Bait them?”

“Not a bad idea. Give them a target.” Kenji mused thoughtfully.

Kiba smirked. “We can arrange something I think. I’ll run it by Tsukasa tomorrow. Let’s get you home.” He restarted the car, driving quickly to Conner’s.

“I’ll come in tomorrow so we can plan this.” Kenji gave Kiba a hug, whispering something that made the other laugh. Then he walked into the house.

Andy sighed, “Hope we can take them down quickly.”

Kiba nodded. “Let’s get some sleep.” He headed to their house.

The next morning, they headed for their car. Kiba was unlocking the door when the window suddenly shattered. “Shit! Sniper! Andy, get down!” He hunched over, pulling his weapon and trying to scan for the shooter.

Andy crouched quickly, grabbing her pistol. She looked around, hoping to find whoever had shot at them, but soon, she heard another shot, pain rushing through her as she got hit. 

“Andy!” Kiba yelled as he ran to her side. He reached for his cell as he put pressure on the wound. “Detective Kaito requesting an ambulance and backup at Detective Takimoto’s residence. Sniper is shooting at us so be cautious.” He hung up, cradling her. “Hold on, okay?”

She nodded slowly, speaking quiet, “Well, we wanted to bait the hospital right..?”

“Not exactly what I had in mind.” He kept pressure, still watching the neighborhood. 

Soon, the ambulance arrived. They got Andy stabilized, then put her in the ambulance. Kiba climbed in, holding her hand.

She squeezed his hand as pain shot through her. She tried to push it out of her mind, taking deep breaths as she tried to focus her mind on the case. “You might want to call Tsukasa or Kenji?”

“Tsukasa will meet us at the hospital. You just concentrate on staying alive.”

When they arrived, she was whisked into surgery as Kiba sat down in the waiting room. Tsukasa soon entered, taking the seat beside the detective. “How is she?”

Kiba sighed. “She was conscious. Kept talking about how this could smoke out the person handing out the tainted blood. But if she gets some..” He put his head in his hands.

Tsukasa gently put a hand on his shoulder. “I’m sure she’ll be alright. Just keep control.”

A blue clothed nurse carefully added another bag of blood to the pile. The mask covered a twisted smile.

Hours later, the doctor came out, informing them of her room number.

Andy woke feeling worse than she had before. Her wound wasn’t as bad, but she ached all over and her head was screaming. She blinked an eye open, wincing at the light.

“Hey. How are you feeling?” Tsukasa was sitting by her bed, scrolling through his phone.

“Honestly? Everything hurts,” she said weakly.

“Any symptoms of being sick?”

“I don’t have nausea yet, but Shouma complained about hurting all over and a killer headache..”

“Kiba took a blood sample to the lab. He’ll be back in a few hours. Try to rest.”

Andy closed her eyes again, trying to sleep to avoid the pain.

  
  


Kiba peered into the microscope, sighing as he confirmed the diagnosis. He called Tsukasa. “She’s been infected. I’m on my way with the antidote.”

He grabbed a vial and left the lab, driving quickly toward the hospital. He cursed as he saw a dark car speeding up behind him. He accelerated, pulling into the hospital parking lot. He got out and was a few feet from the door when he felt a sharp pain in his back and the world went black. The vial rolled out of his hand as he fell.

Tsukasa came running out as he heard a commotion in the waiting room. His heart sank as he saw a doctor rising from a still figure by the front door. He waited until the body had been removed, then walked over. He knelt, swearing as he found the vial under a chair. He stole a syringe from the nurse’s desk and quickly injected Andy. 

Andy woke, feeling a little better but still sore. She looked around, “Where’s Kiba?”

Tsukasa sat nearby, his head in his hands. “He’s dead. They killed him when he got here. I found the antidote and gave it to you.”

Andy quickly pushed herself off the bed, swaying a moment and catching herself against the wall.

He grabbed her. “You’re in no condition to be out of bed, much less reviving anyone.”

Andy looked at him, tears in her eyes, “But I have to help him.”

“He’d be upset if something happened to you after he brought the antidote.” Tsukasa tried to push her back on the bed.

The tears started streaming down her face, “I can’t lose him.” 

Tsukasa sighed sadly. “We’ll have to wait until everyone goes home.” He checked his watch. “Ten minutes.”

Andy sat down, wiping her face as more tears fell. She winced at the soreness from her wound. 

Ten minutes later, Tsukasa wheeled her into the elevator, heading for the basement. When it opened, he carefully looked out to make sure the coast was clear before wheeling her into the morgue.

Kiba lay on a table, covered by a sheet. He looked like he was sleeping.

Andy raised her hands and started healing him. It took her a while, but she finally got him breathing again. She slumped over in the wheelchair, exhaustion washing over her.

“You are going back to bed.” Tsukasa reached for his phone, contacting Daiki. “Come get Kiba.” He hung up, turning her around and taking her back to her room. “I’ll be here all night just in case the attacker shows up.” He helped her into bed, then sat down and sighed.

“What do we do if we can’t find the attacker?”

“I honestly don’t know. We can’t do our job if we have a target on our back all the time.” Tsukasa ran a hand tiredly over his eyes. “You need to rest.”

She nodded, closing her eyes and quickly falling back to sleep.

Tsukasa opened his eyes groggily, wondering when he’d fallen asleep. He let out a soft groan as he stood and stretched. Glancing over, he relaxed as he saw Andy sleeping peacefully. After a minute, he sat down again. He was reaching for his phone when the door opened. 

He turned to see a nurse entering. He paid no attention as the nurse approached Andy, checking the machine readouts. The nurse placed the clipboard on the bed, removing a syringe and uncapping it. He was about to put the needle into the tube when Tsukasa quietly spoke. “Can I see that? And your instructions if you would.”

The nurse turned to see the shifter aiming his weapon. “No problem.” The nurse slowly lifted the clipboard, then whipped it around. He knocked the gun from Tsukasa’s hands and injected the syringe in one swift motion.

Tsukasa cried out as a burning sensation went through his arm. He dropped to his knees as his heart began hammering in his chest. He glimpsed his gun, laying on the bed and tried to reach for it. The nurse wrapped an arm around his throat, spots dancing in his vision as he gasped for air. 

Andy heard the commotion, waking quickly. She grabbed the gun and shot the nurse. She made sure he was dead before going to Tsukasa and checking him over. “What happened?”

The words were strained as he was hyperventilating. “Tried to poison you. Got me instead.” He was clutching his chest as he shook, his eyes unfocused.

Andy tried to steady his breathing, controlling his lungs and heart. “Don’t worry, everything will be okay.” 

He gave her a faint smile before he passed out.

She worked on him for a long time, making sure he was staying steady before finally relaxing. She lifted him and laid him on the bed before sitting in the chair next to him.

Two hours later, his eyes started fluttering.

“Hey, you with me?” Andy asked sleepily.

“Think so. Feel like shit, but I need to report this.” He sat up slowly with a groan and reached for his phone.

“Do you want me to make the calls instead? You look like you need more rest.”

“You need the rest more than me probably.” He closed his eyes wearily.

“Not sure what’s worse, getting shot or poisoned,” Andy chuckled.

“Having been on both sides.. Poisoned is worse.” Tsukasa gave her a weak grin.

“So then, who do I need to call?” Andy grabbed her phone.

“Whoever’s in the squad tonight. Probably the Chief too because it involves these guys.” Tsukasa tried to stay awake, but the darkness overtook him.

Andy quietly called the Chief before checking the schedule and calling Ryon. She sat back, wondering if Kiba was awake yet and sent him a text.

Her phone pinged a minute later. She smiled and dialed up his number. “How are you feeling?”

“Confused. All I remember is starting to head into the hospital, pain, then nothing. I came to at the ranch. The vial was gone. Are you alright?”

“Tsukasa found the vial and gave it to me. So other than normal hurting after getting shot, I’m fine. He got poisoned but he’s okay now just resting.”

“Was it the SHJ?”

“Probably? It was some nurse,” she glanced over to where the body was still on the floor, “Haven’t really checked him out yet.”

“Be careful. I’ll be by to pick you up in the morning. Keep Tsukasa safe?”

“I’ll try,” she answered.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.” She clicked her phone off before scrolling through the internet. She kept glancing up at the door, wondering if any real nurses would come by or if more attackers would try to hurt them.

The sun was rising before the door opened again. A nurse appeared, her eyes widening at the body.

Andy looked up at her and chuckled softly, “Sorry about that, we’ll have someone by soon to clean up.”

She quickly backed out of the room just as Ryon arrived. “Heard you guys had an eventful night.” He glanced at the body. “We’ll get that out of here. How’s the Captain?”

“He’s doing alright now, I think.”

“I’m fine. Nothing a gallon of coffee won’t fix.” Tsukasa sat up, running a hand through his hair.

Ryon stepped aside to let the coroner remove the body, then looked at them. “I’ll take care of the report. You two try to stay out of trouble alright?”

She nodded, “We’ll try.”


	12. Chapter 12

Kiba opened his eyes slowly. The bedroom was dark and he had no idea what had awakened him. He glanced at Andy who was still sound asleep. He sighed, laying on the bed and listening to the night noises.

A jingling sound made him pause. That didn’t belong and he cautiously climbed out of bed, pulling his gun from where it lay on the dresser. He started for the door, only to be knocked back as it burst inward at the same time the light flashed on.

Andy woke in confusion, blinking quickly from the bright lights, “What’s going on?” She noticed the commotion and quickly grabbed her gun.

Kiba struggled against the attackers until a white hot pain erupted in his side and back. He gasped, too focused on breathing to fight the zip ties tightening around his wrists and ankles.

Andy started shooting at the attackers, at least hitting one of them before they started turning toward her. 

They swarmed her, quickly binding her the same as Kiba. Then one approached with a maniacal smile, pulling a syringe of clear fluid out. He jabbed her arm, depressing the plunger quickly. “Take them.”

They carried both detectives out, Kiba hanging limp as blood dripped onto the floor. Tossing them in a van, they sped away.

Andy struggled against the ties, wanting to help Kiba out of his and help heal him. Soon though, the smell of his blood was overwhelming her and she pushed herself away from him so she wouldn’t be tempted by it. 

The man who had injected her laughed. “Is it working?”

She growled, “What did you do?”

“Just gave you something to help your hunger.” He laughed again as the van pulled to a stop. He got out and helped carry them into the tiny room. “Like your new accommodations? You can’t escape and no one knows where you are. The drug will keep your hunger unsatisfied, even after you drain him. You’ll starve, alone with the knowledge you killed him until you die.” 

He began to slide the door closed, then paused. “Here’s something else to think about. While you’re here, your squad is going to be wiped out.” He smiled viciously, then slid the door shut. There was the sound of a lock clicking, then the van started. Soon even that noise vanished.

Andy moved as far from Kiba as she could, trying to think of a way out of there.

“You okay?” Kiba’s voice was pained, his eyes locked on her.

“I’ll be fine...” She sighed, “How are you doing?”

He broke eye contact. “Just worry about getting yourself out of here, okay?”

“I’m not leaving without you,” Andy said, trying to sound confident.

“Andy..sweetheart. I’m not going to make it.” He had made no move to sit up, laying his head on the concrete floor to hide his trembling.

“I can heal you..”

“I can’t feel my legs and I’m too weak. They stabbed me too deep in too vital an area. Probably won’t last more than another hour. You’re going to need your strength to get out of here and save the squad. Take it from me.”

Andy shook her head, tears filling her eyes. “I can’t lose you.”

“At least this way, it’s not wasted..” He gave her a sad chuckle. “You have to save them. There’s no other way.” He bent his head, exposing his neck. “Do it.”

“No. I’m going to heal you.”

“That drug they gave you is called Limbo. Vampires use it before rampaging. It blocks everything but the bloodlust. No other powers work until it wears off. Regular dose takes two hours. So you either drain me or watch me bleed to death slowly and painfully.” He finally looked at her again. “Which will it be?” 

She shook her head, looking down at the floor as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Please sweetheart..” His face was pale, the trembling turning into full shaking as he grew colder. “I’m so cold and tired. Hold me?”

She moved to him, wrapping her arms around him. She ran a hand through his hair gently. She tried to keep her eyes off the blood dripping to the floor, biting her lip as she tried not to think about it.

He gave a sigh, blinking slowly. “You’re warm.. I love you. Don’t let them die because of me..”

“I love you too,” she sighed. She raised one of her hands to him, trying to check him over. Her power was weakened, but she could see a little bit of the internal damage. It was like the normally clear pictures she could see in her mind were blurry. She struggled to start healing him, trying to close the wound but it was going so slowly it barely seemed like anything changed.

He lay still, the briefest of breaths escaping to show he was still alive. His eyes were half open, glazing slowly as he stared into the distance.

Andy continued to struggle healing him, the scent of blood growing stronger by the second. 

“Andy..” His eyes struggled to focus. “Cold.. Help me..” His skin was icy, the pallor of his skin offset by the blue of his lips.

She held him close to her, tears dripping down her cheeks. “Stay with me, okay?” 

He shook his head as his breath hitched. “Sorry sweetheart.. End it _please_..” He tilted his neck up a final time.

Andy took a deep breath, trying to stop the sobbing that had started. She hugged him tightly but finally sighed, “I guess if that’s what you really want...”

He nodded almost imperceptibly. “Save yourself and the squad..”

“Even if I help you die quicker, I don’t know how to get out of here. It’s just prolonging my own death, probably.”

He struggled to speak. “Vampires take on shifter characteristics. You’ll get my strength from both my shifts. Break down door..” He coughed, blood spilling from his lips.

Andy kissed him quickly, “I’m going to do everything I can to bring you back..”

He gave her a weak smile. “I know..”

Andy kissed him again before moving toward his neck. She took another deep breath before finally moving to bite him. Blood washed over her tongue, only slightly helping with the thirst she felt. 

She sat there for a few minutes, holding Kiba close to her before finally standing, eyes filled with rage. She struggled with the door, trying to get it open. Eventually it started to budge, and she pulled it open with an angry yell. She went and lifted Kiba, carrying him out of the room, looking around to figure out where she was. 

She realized she was by the docks. The van they’d been brought in stood abandoned near her. 

She put Kiba safely in the back before getting the van started. She headed to the station first, walking in looking for any of her squad members.

Ryon sat at his desk, head bowed. “Go ahead and close the squad..”

“What’s happening and do we know where these bastards are?” Andy growled.

“ANDY?” His head jerked up, his eyes wide. “You’re alive?”

“Obviously. Now what’s happening?”

His eyes grew haunted. “I’m the only one left, aside from the vampires. They’re unavailable though.” He stared back down at the desk.

“I’m going to find these assholes and rip their throats open with my teeth,” Andy scowled. “And then I’m going to do everything I can to revive the others. You work on gathering the dead while I go figure out where they’re hiding.”

“They’re at the abandoned warehouse in District 12. I was waiting to see if any of the brass were going to show up before going after them myself. The vampires already have our dead at the ranch.” His voice was tight, his control barely holding.

“Ok, Kiba’s in a van out front. Are you taking him to the ranch or coming with me?”

“ **I want revenge**.” The wolf’s voice was low as he stared at his bloodstained hands. “I **need** to kill something.” He trembled with rage.

Andy nodded, “Alright, let’s go then.”

Ryon headed for his car without a word. His badge lay open on the desk.

He waited for her to climb in before texting Conner. Then he threw his cell in the backseat and started the car.

He pulled to a halt a few feet from the warehouse, checking his gun. He looked at Andy, his eyes glowing. “If I go down... Just make sure you get all of them, you hear me?”

She nodded before smirking, “Alright. Just don’t get in my way or I might bite you.”

He gave her a half smile. “Same goes here.” He climbed out of the car, then looked at his gun. After a minute, he tossed it into the backseat as well, then shifted into his wolf form.

Andy took a deep breath before heading toward the door to enter the building. She quickly swung it open, looking inside.

About two dozen men stared back at her in shock before Ryon jumped snarling into their midst. He grabbed one of the men, ripping his arm from his body before latching onto his neck. The others started yelling, running in all directions.

Andy pushed a group of them up against the wall with her telekinesis, quickly biting one of them and draining him of his blood. She went on and did that to the others, the drug in her body still making her extremely thirsty. 

Ryon tore through several men, his eyes blazing and his muzzle dripping. Suddenly one man pulled out an Uzi and began firing. The wolf jerked, multiple bullets ripping into him. He let out a howl, then fell in a heap. 

Andy turned to the shooter, pushing him against the wall and knocking the weapon from his hands. She quickly took him out before looking to see how many men were left.

Bodies littered the floor. Only one man was left, scrambling for the door. He tripped over Ryon, sprawling onto the floor.  
  
  


Andy quickly took him out then lifted the wolf up and carried him out the door. After getting him into the car, she made her way to the ranch.

Conner was waiting when she arrived, his eyes sad. Kenji stood beside him quietly. “Glad to see someone survived.”

Andy sighed, getting Ryon out of the car, “I’ll see what I can do for them..”

Connor helped her get the wolf to the basement. Six beds were covered and the vampire averted his eyes as he lay Ryon down.

“At least Kiba and Ryon will need transfusions, so you might want to go grab some blood so we can set up transfusions?” Andy suggested before starting to look at the damage on her friends.

Conner nodded, leaving up the stairs quickly.

Andy uncovered the first body, noticing Tsukasa.

He’d been badly burned, his neck slashed on one side.

Kenji appeared beside her. “They apparently ambushed him in his car. They did that, then blew it up.” 

Andy shook her head, “Who were these people?” 

“Offshoots of the SHJ. This was payback for stopping the tainted blood.”

Andy sighed, starting to heal Tsukasa. She gave a small smile when she realized her healing was back to normal. She worked on the slash first, then the burns. She finally got him all healed up before working on restarting his heart. Finally, his breathing and heartbeat stabilized so she moved onto the next bed. She uncovered the next, finding Tetsuya.

A large hole in his chest told the story.

Andy focused on closing it and reviving him before going back to Ryon and healing him up. She got the wolf breathing again before uncovering the next body, noticing it was Taka.

The phoenix had been beaten viciously, blood everywhere. His face was barely touched though, his features calm.

Andy sucked in a breath, looking him over. She shook her head trying to clear her mind before focusing on healing. When she was done, she focused on getting him to breathe again and gave a relieved smile when she finally got his heart pumping. 

She glanced over at the three beds left. She hoped she would be able to bring them back just like she had the others. She started feeling tired but she continued on and went to the next bed, uncovering Ryusei.

Kenji growled as he saw the youngest team member. “The bastards ran him down, then ran him over again. He was still alive, so they shot him. Ryon got there in time to have him die in his arms.” The vampire’s voice was heavy with grief.

Andy looked at the teen sadly for a moment before working on healing the damage. It took her about an hour to fully fix everything, then another twenty minutes to get his vitals up to a normal level. 

The next bed she uncovered was Daiki.

He had a bullet hole in his stomach which exited out his spine. He also had evidence of head trauma.

Conner reappeared, hooking blood up to Ryon and Kiba. He looked up at her in shock as he saw the bite mark.

Andy’s eyes filled with tears but she shook her head instead of speaking. She looked down at Daiki, trying to focus on healing him instead of thinking about Kiba.

Conner shook his head, checking on their now breathing friends. 

It took Andy another hour to work on Daiki and get him breathing, then she went to Kiba’s side. She stared at him with tears in her eyes for a while as the blood was pumped into him. She finally started the healing process, first healing the bite mark then moving to the large wound. She struggled as she felt exhaustion washing over her, but she continued working. Once his wounds were healed, she checked and made sure none of the virus from her biting him survived. She focused hard on his heartbeat, making sure his body was pumping the new blood through his whole body before focusing on his lungs and getting him breathing. She finally got him revived before standing there, leaning hard on the bed as she watched his body move up and down with each breath.

Kenji and Conner took each arm, gently leading her up the stairs and into a bed. “You need rest.”

She looked up at them, struggling to keep her eyes open, “What if they need more help?”

“If we need you, we’ll wake you. Just rest right now.” Kenji gave her a soft smile as Conner gently tucked her in.

Andy nodded slowly, finally closing her eyes and quickly falling asleep.

Kiba woke, panicking. He looked around in confusion. “Where is she?”

Conner laid a hand on him, making him jump. “She’s asleep. Before you ask, she’s fine and so is everyone else. Just calm down.”

Kiba took a shaky breath, settling back and nodding.

Conner gave him a smile, disappearing up the stairs. The vampire peeked in to see if Andy was awake.

Andy woke quickly, everything that happened coming back to her at once. She sat up, trying to take deep breaths as she remembered everyone was alive. 

“Andy? You okay?” Conner’s voice was gentle and concerned.

She jumped slightly at the noise before nodding, “I’ll be fine.. How’s everyone else doing?”

“Kiba’s awake. He was panicking, but I got him calmed down. Everyone else is still unconscious.”

Andy nodded and pushed herself out of bed. She headed to the stairs to go see Kiba. She gave a small smile when she finally spotted him.

His eyes lit up as he saw her. “Thank the gods. I was afraid you were dead.”

She went over and hugged him tightly, “I’m so glad you’re alive.”

He returned the hug, giving her a deep kiss after.

After they pulled away slightly, she refused to completely let him go, keeping her hands on his. “I love you.”

“Ditto.”


	13. Chapter 13

Andy stepped out of the bathroom, towel wrapped around her. She went to the mirror to start brushing her hair but she paused, staring at the scars on her chest. She ran her fingers over the word ‘healer’ still unfaded from the attack she’d gotten it in months before.

She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment trying to push the memories away before continuing to brush her hair. She then quickly did her makeup before getting into the long silver dress she picked out for the police ball. She wrapped the blue shawl around her shoulders before heading out of the room to where Kiba was waiting.

He was fidgeting, his blue suit creased from leaning against the wall. “I hate these damn things.”

“Suits or dances?” Andy chuckled.

“Both. Too restricting and I can’t dance. Plus you have to make nice with assholes who would rather stab you in the back than let you do the job.”

“I’m sure it won’t be too bad,” she answered before smirking, “And at least this time you have a date.”

He gave her a wry smile. “Only thing that’s worth the hassle is you.” He straightened, taking her hand and leading her to the car.

Andy watched as the big building came closer into view, “I’ve not had to go to one of these before. I always worked the nights they had it. But I’ve always wanted to check it out.”

“Watered down booze, overpriced food and authority figures so slimy you feel sorry for the sewer they climbed out of. I’d rather work. Hell, I’d rather be attacked by two gangs of suckers and shifters at the same time.”

“Maybe it’s just the girly side of me, but they always looked so fun. Beautiful dresses, dancing...” she trailed off.

He laughed, kissing her cheek. “Well, now you’re going to enjoy yourself. I do admit that you look stunning in that dress.”

Andy blushed, “Thanks. Let’s go. I’m sure the others are waiting.”

Andy entered the room, bright lights shining everywhere. The room had a lot of marble, looking extremely elegant. Waiters walked around serving drinks and hors d'oeuvres. She looked around in amazement, feeling like she’d stepped into a fairy tale.

Kiba nudged her with a wide smile. “Close your mouth, you’re catching flies.” 

Andy chuckled, “Shut up.”

He laughed, handing her a glass of champagne from one of the waiters. “I should let you enjoy your first time, shouldn’t I?”

Andy smiled, “Let’s just find the others?”

Kiba scanned the room, his gaze finally landing on most of the squad huddling in a hallway nearby. He nudged Andy again.

They headed over there, “Hey guys.”

Tet and Tsukasa gave her smiles, while the other shifters just looked uncomfortable.

“Can we leave yet?” Daiki whined.

“We just got here. I’m sure it can’t be _that_ bad.”

“You missed the Chief’s aide berating us for looking shabby and not making nice with the other squads.” Tet fought laughter as Ryusei added “Never mind the fact that every other squad runs when they see us coming.”

Andy rolled her eyes, “Well I think it’ll be fun.”

Tsukasa chuckled. “Definitely a first timer. Why don’t you two go dance?”

Kiba shot him a dirty look. “Not funny.”

Daiki fought a smile. “Just let her lead, bro.”

Andy chuckled and took Kiba’s hand, “Come on, it’ll be fun.”

He rolled his eyes, but let himself be led to the dance floor.

Andy started leading him as they danced. She smiled softly, “I wish there were more dances for adults. I haven’t been to a dance since senior prom.”

Kiba kissed her cheek softly. “I guess we’ll just have to do this more often then.”

After the song was done she sighed, “I won’t make you dance more if you don’t want to. We could get some food if you want?”

“I’ll let you decide. This is your night.” He gave a thumbs up to the others behind her back.

Andy smirked, “Alright, one more dance then food.”

He chuckled, taking her hand and kissing it. “Your wish is my command.”

After they danced, Andy led him over toward the food so they could look at the options.

Seafood was plentiful along with steak and chicken. 

“It all looks so good!” Andy grinned.

“Well, it’s free. So pick whatever you like.” Kiba started to fill a plate.

Andy quickly filled a plate. “Free food, dancing, pretty dresses... I still don’t see why you guys hate these balls.”

“They’d be fine if it wasn’t for the idiots throwing it and all the judgemental looks. It doesn’t matter to them our record, it’s still the same prejudice everywhere. We’re monsters and we have to be watched so we don’t kill everyone.” Kiba sighed as they found seats.

“Just ignore them. We can’t convince everyone they’re wrong, so just focus on having fun instead.” 

He grinned as the others started to sit down. “They starting already?” He raised an eyebrow at Tsukasa, who nodded with a smile.

“You guys still not having fun?” Andy chuckled.

They glanced at each other, fighting smiles before focusing on the Chief now at the podium.

“I’d like to present Officer of the Year to Detective Andaka Takimoto.” The Chief met her eyes and beckoned her up.

Andy’s eyes widened and she looked at her friends in confusion.

They started laughing, Tsukasa pushing her towards the podium.

Andy slowly approached the podium.

“Speech! Speech!” Tet and Ryusei started shouting amid laughter from the others.

Andy chuckled and went up to the Chief.

He shook her hand and handed her the framed commendation, then sat down.

Andy looked at the crowd a moment nervously. “Thank you very much. I’m very surprised. I definitely couldn’t have done everything without the help from my squad. So thank you guys.” She stepped down and headed back to her seat, staring at the framed item.

Kiba kissed her cheek softly. “I had so much trouble not telling you. We’re very proud of you. None of us would be here if it wasn’t for you.”

Andy smiled, “seriously, thank you guys.”

Tsukasa gave her a salute as the others gave smiles. “Now that the festivities are over, who wants to sneak out and get a beer?”

Andy chuckled, “The champagne not your style?”

“That and the sooner I’m out of this damned suit the better.” The captain grinned as the others chuckled in commiseration.

Andy rolled her eyes, “Come on then, there’s a few bars nearby or you guys can come hang out at our place?”

“Our place.” Kiba gave her a grin as they quickly headed for the parking lot. Once there, the team pulled out changes of clothes, much to Andy’s delight.

At the house, Andy decided to stay in her dress, but went and grabbed a beer for everyone.

The squad toasted her with a smile before downing them.

She went and grabbed more out in case they wanted some. She started her second beer as she sat down next to Kiba.

After a minute, Tsukasa gave her a serious look. “Do you remember what I told you after we escaped the facility?”

Andy looked thoughtful for a moment before shaking her head.

He gave a small smile. “I guess it _has_ been a while. We’ve been acting like a normal squad for so long. We’re going after another facility. You don’t have to come along, but it’s up to you.”

Andy nodded, “You know I’ll come help.”

Kiba gave Tsukasa a smile. “Told you.”

Tsukasa’s lips twitched before he nodded. “We’re hitting it in two days. Genius here has already gotten the codes to get us in. We rescue whoever’s alive and wipe the place off the map. No mercy.”

Andy nodded, “Sounds good.”

He nodded quietly, then finished his beer. “No need for me to tell you not to act different. Keep doing the job so no one gets suspicious. But be alert for trouble. If the government gets any ideas, we may be in danger.”

The squad nodded as he sighed. “I’m going home. See you tomorrow.” He headed for the door and left.

Andy sipped her beer, looking around at her friends in silence.

Tet pursed his lips, then smiled. “This is supposed to be a happy day. Let’s celebrate.”

Kiba chuckled and toasted Andy again. “Sweetheart, you deserve more than a commendation. You deserve a queenship.”

Andy chuckled and kissed him, “Thanks.” 

“Not much of a speech though.” Ryusei’s eyes twinkled as he teased her. “Better than just standing there I guess.”

“Maybe if I’d known I could have prepared something.” She laughed.

“And ruin the surprise? No way.” Daiki chuckled.

Andy smiled, “I really am surprised. I really wasn’t expecting it to go to someone on our squad, especially me.”

The guys laughed, excusing themselves and leaving.


	14. Chapter 14

“Remember get in, rescue anybody you find and get out. Ryusei has already hacked their computers and Shouma is compiling all the data. No unnecessary risks.” Tsukasa looked sternly at each of them before covering his face.

A chorus of ‘yes sirs’ made him smile under the mask. 

The squad dispersed until only Kiba and Andy were left. Tsukasa sighed, then started forward with them following.

They had gone through almost half the facility before the comm buzzed.

“Tsukasa, I think we’ve been had.” Tet’s voice was strained. “Haven’t found anyone yet.”

Kiba looked at Andy in surprise.

“Is this a trap?” She wondered aloud.

The two men frowned, Tsukasa finally touching his mic. “Everyone withdraw. Meet back at the squad room.”

Another chorus of confirmations were heard. Then they heard gunfire over the comm. Tsukasa cursed, turning and pushing the couple through a door just as an explosion occurred behind him. He fell, Kiba dragging him into the room.

“Get out of here… don’t let them catch you.” Tsukasa wheezed, blood on his lips.

“We aren’t just leaving you,” Andy answered, kneeling beside him to start healing him.

He scowled, but didn’t have the strength to protest. His eyes were closing from shock.

The sounds of battle continued to ring through the open comm until Kiba angrily switched it off. He stood, beginning to head back into the hall.

Andy stood, “Get Tsukasa out of here, I’ll go find the others.”

He stopped and turned. “If they catch you..” He shook his head. “Can’t let that happen.”

The door suddenly opened, causing Kiba to whirl. He dropped his pistol as Ryusei fell into his arms, the teen bleeding from several wounds. He struggled to speak. “They.. they took Ryon and Tet..” His eyes closed and he went limp. The shifter quickly checked for a pulse, finding it erratic.

Andy cursed, “Get them to safety, I’ll go find the other two and meet you at the station. I don’t want them getting you either, so don’t argue about that.”

Kiba growled, grabbing and kissing her hard. “Don’t make me rescue you.” He released her and grabbed both men, running toward the exit.

Andy grabbed her gun, heading to look for the others. She heard some loud noises coming from the other side of the building, so she started that way and hoped for the best.

Two bodies lay in the hall unmoving.

Andy knelt beside them, scanning them over.

Taka was alive, but barely. His chest struggled to rise as blood pooled beneath him.

Daiki was gone, three bullets having pierced his chest and stomach.

Andy sighed, lifting them carefully before moving on to find the others.

Ryon’s voice echoed through the hall. “I’m going to rip all of you apart!” He let out a scream as an electric buzz was heard rapidly growing louder. 

Andy rushed toward the sound, hoping to save him from more pain. She peered around into the room, analyzing the situation.

Tet was unconscious, blood trickling from a gash in his scalp. Ryon was bound to an upright table, his cries getting weaker as a guard forced a cattle prod into a shoulder wound. The shifter shook as the guard laughed and raised the intensity. 

Andy quickly shot at the guard, hoping to get him away from Ryon.

He turned, lifting the prod and charging as he saw her. The other guards stood still in shock.

Andy threw him up against the wall using her telekinesis. She then shot at him again before shooting at the other guards.

They went down in a heap unmoving.

“Ryusei..” Ryon’s voice was weak, his eyes struggling to stay open.

“Don’t worry, he’ll be okay,” Andy said softly as she released him from the table. She lifted him and Tet next to Daiki and Taka and started her way out the building.

The van sat abandoned, the side door open. Tsukasa and Ryusei lay dead on the floor, bullet shells laying around them. There was no sign of Kiba aside from his dropped pistol.

Andy cursed, putting everyone into the van. She headed to the station, getting everyone into the squad room before starting to heal them. It took her hours to get everyone back, and she checked them over again, making sure their breathing and heartbeats were stable. She sat at her desk a moment, trying to figure out where to start the search for Kiba.

“The government wants..to experiment on him.” Tsukasa said quietly.

“Where can I find him?”

The captain slowly stood, entering a password on Ryusei’s computer. A floor plan appeared and Tsukasa swung the monitor to face her. “The main ‘research’ facility. We were going to hit it next week.”

Andy looked the floor plan over, nodding. “I’m going to go try to rescue him.”

“ _Alone?_ Are you insane?” Tsukasa looked at her.

“You guys aren’t in good enough shape to go.”

“Take the vampires at least.” Tsukasa pleaded, worry in his eyes.

Andy sighed, picking her phone up and dialing Conner’s number.

“What’s wrong?” The vampire cut to the point.

“Want to help me save Kiba from the government?”

Conner cursed. “Told Tsukasa it was too easy. Where are you?”

“I’m at the station.”

“The five of us will be there in twenty. Don’t do anything without us.” The phone clicked.

Andy started pacing as she waited for them, stopping for a moment to check on the others before continuing.

“Calm down. You can’t help him without a clear head.” Tet stood and put his hands on her shoulders.

“I know, I’m trying to stay calm..”

He gave her a small smile as the vampires entered the room. 

“Where are we going and how many guards do we have to kill?” Conner’s voice was low, his eyes serious.

“The main research facility so probably a lot of guards.”

Kenji gave a feral smile, his fangs glinting. “Good. I’m hungry.”

Andy gave a small chuckle in response.

Kiba panted as the pain receded. As the scientists conferred amongst themselves, he tried once again to get free. Again, he was unsuccessful and he growled. His mind strayed to Andy and he fervently hoped she was safe. Hopefully, the other squad members would keep her from trying to rescue him. He wouldn’t be able to withstand what he knew was coming if she was in danger.

The scientists reapproached him, picking up a needle of red fluid. He tried to struggle, but the bonds were too tight and he snarled as it was injected. The pain was overwhelming and he gasped before the room went black.

Andy stared at the floor plan again, trying to make sure she had it memorized before they headed out of the station.

Kenji sat beside her in the van, trying unsuccessfully to rein in his anger. The thought of Kiba in the hands of those heartless monsters.. He wrapped his arms over his chest.

Andy stared out the window, hoping they’d be able to get Kiba back. She tried to push away the worry and focused on trying to stay calm and confident.

Conner drove the speed limit until they got outside the city, then he hit the gas. 

An hour later, he stopped the van and nudged Andy. “We’re here.”

Andy nodded, “You guys ready?”

They nodded, baring their fangs before climbing out.

The facility rose above them in the moonlight.

Kenji and the twins forced the doors open, biting guards as they tried to stop them.

Andy entered, keeping an eye out for more guards as she started down the hallway. She glanced into rooms, looking for any prisoners.

The scientists grew alarmed as they heard shouts from outside. They stopped what they were doing to order the guards out.

Kiba took a shuddering breath, feeling the blood pool around him. He had a fleeting hope someone was here to rescue him, but shook his head. No, he couldn’t count on anyone. He was going to die alone and he knew it. He just hoped Andy was safe.

Andy noticed guards coming her way, and she pulled her gun out to start shooting at them. A few fell to the ground as the bullets impacted. The ones still standing pulled their weapons out and started shooting back. She caught most of the bullets with her telekinesis and sent them back. She missed a couple of the bullets though, and hissed as one grazed her arm. 

Kenji flew past her, fangs bared. He knocked the final guard down and tore open his throat. After a moment, he ripped the door off its hinges. He disappeared inside the room, then he screamed for Andy.

Andy entered quickly, wondering if he’d found Kiba.

Scientists lay sprawled around the room, several with their throats savaged. Kenji stood shaking, his face pale as he stared at the table.

Kiba lay still, his eyes closed. His open chest rose and fell erratically. He had transfusion bags attached to his arms. 

Andy rushed to his side, scanning him over and working to heal his wounds. She pushed away her worry and anger, just focusing on trying to heal him.

His eyes cracked open, widening when they recognized her. “You..shouldn’t be here. They’ll..kill you.”

“I’d rather die trying to save you than live knowing I didn’t even try.” She sighed. “Plus, it’s not like I came alone.”

“You..can’t save..me. They did too much..”

“You know I’m not going to just give up.”

He tried to chuckle but coughed instead, blood appearing on his lips. “I wish..we had more time..”

Tears filled in Andy’s eyes, “Don’t talk like that. Everything will be okay.” She continued to focus on healing the damage.

He gave her a weak smile. “I love you..” His breath hitched, his eyes closing.

“Come on, stay with me,” Andy begged, pushing her powers faster, trying to keep him alive.

His heartbeat faded, his breath ceasing.

Andy sobbed, continuing to try focusing on healing him. She lost track of how long she’d been standing there, all thoughts gone except trying to save him.

Kenji pulled her away. “He’s gone.”

Tears streamed down her face, “He can’t be.” She pulled away from him and went back to Kiba’s side.

The other vampires slowly entered. Conner looked at Kenji, eyes closing as he got a shake of the head.

“Andy, we have to go. The guards will be missed soon.” Conner tried to move her toward the door.

“I’m not leaving him.” Andy stated, eyes still focused on her boyfriend’s body.

“Of course not. Just let the twins get him to the van, okay?” Conner motioned the two over to the table as he held Andy.

Tears continued streaming down her face but she refused to give up on Kiba.

The twins quickly wrapped a sheet around the shifter and headed out the door.

“Come on, let’s go.” Conner gently led her out to the van, seating her on the floor. The twins gently placed Kiba’s head in her lap, then closed the door and climbed in the other side. 

Andy ran her hand thru Kiba’s hair for a minute before going back to healing him. She struggled as she kept pumping his heart, hoping it would start back to it’s normal rhythm. She felt herself growing weaker, having already revived almost the whole squad earlier, plus her arm was now throbbing with pain from the bullet that grazed her. She continued on though, refusing to give up. Eventually Kiba sucked in a breath, and Andy gave a small sigh of relief as she continued to monitor him. She felt dizzy and exhausted, but she wouldn’t take her focus off Kiba.

His eyes struggled to open. “Sweetheart? Is this real?”

She smiled down at him, running her hand through his hair again, “Yes, this is real.”

“I was afraid they’d hurt you..” His words were slow and slurred.  
  
  


“I’m fine,” Andy gave a soft smile. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” His eyes closed as he lost consciousness.

Kenji stayed silent, but inwardly wondered how much power Andy had and if she realized her potential.

Andy continued to brush Kiba’s hair, until her head finally fell forward as she passed out from the exhaustion.

Conner sighed, making his way to their apartment. He called Tsukasa, giving him the details. When they arrived, he and Kenji carried them into the bedroom laying them on the bed and covering them. Then they left.


End file.
